Ghost Whisperer
by impromptumelody95
Summary: 3 years is all it takes for the sole active member of team 7 to crumble to pieces. But Sakura is anything but weak. She fears she's on the brink of insanity when she hears and sees things that no other can. Perhaps it's Team 7's curse to be comprised of a beast, a traitor and a madwoman; she's fitting in at last. But what if it's a gift?
1. Prologue

**_Please read and review! _**

* * *

**PROLOGUE **

A Glimpse of the Present

* * *

_"…I won't be coming back."_

_"But you'll be safe..." _

_It was more of a statement than a question for reassurance. _

_She brought a hand up to flick brunette locks away from emerald eyes. __Giving the man lying outstretched on the futon a rueful parting smile she lightly descended the staircase. A multi-layered genjutsu began weaving itself behind her with each step she took; she always took care of her own.  
_

_Her face settled into a cool, indifferent mask - weight distributed evenly between both feet as she reached the empty foyer._

_It wouldn't be empty for long._

_The tinkling of bells announced their arrival. They _**wanted** _her to know they were coming. _

_Seconds later they appeared: black cloaks strewn with blood-red clouds billowing in the wind, bells dangling from straw hats that kept the rising sand from blowing into their eyes…_

_A tilt of a hat. A knowing smirk. _

_Metal clashed with metal._

* * *

_They were seated around the kitchen table in a silence weighted with anticipation. Blood red eyes glanced up first and the others followed suit, watching as a petite figure emerged from the doorway. _

_She stood there in a casual stance __much to their surprise. Her limbs and chakra unrestrained. A battle had had to have broken out – of that there was no doubt – yet here she was unscathed and relaxed in their presence as if she was certain that they would or could not hurt her. That was startling in itself.  
_

_A smirk played on her lips as she gazed directly into the crimson tones of the Sharingan. She inclined her head so that a few stray brunette strands slipped across a rather wide forehead into an intense emerald gaze as she saluted him. "Uchiha."_

_Bewilderment flitted through his eyes for a split-second and was gone; well-hidden underneath a placid mask. Where had he seen those eyes before? Those bright viridian hues._

_His photographic memory never failed him. _

_The very second he had his answer brunette hair flickered under a brief henge giving the illusion of long, flowing pink hair, then reverted to its original dyed colour. _

_Hands slammed the table violently as the furious blonde beside him registered it too. "The _**bitch** _who killed Sasori-danna!" _

_Her smile widened. _

_"I'll _kill_ you…!" __He sprung back, hands deftly moulding clay as he fixed her with an outraged glare._

_Itachi's eyes narrowed slightly when the two Akatsuki members standing behind her - the two who had brought her there - made no move to intercept the fight. _

_She was Haruno Sakura. The would-have-been kyuubi-bait. His otouto's weak little teammate, now the Legendary Sannin's medic apprentice. Naïve and compassionate...he had never believed that she had become a missing nin. But here she was. _

_She was terribly weak the first time he saw her, crying and watching as her team mates fought in her defense. Was she still so horribly weak?_

_Why then did cool confidence roll off her posture in almost tangible waves? Was it folly, arrogance or knowledge that allowed her to adopt such a casual stance in the presence of her enemies?_

___She was needed alive. She was brought here for a very special reason after all..._

_The little white clay bird was launched straight at her yet no-one was moving. _

_Neither. Was. She. _

_It was shock that kept Deidara from detonating his creation. Pure, unadulterated shock._

_She was fearless._

_Then Itachi was boring holes into the ceiling with his intense gaze, where the air had been distorted by a layered masking genjutsu that was deliberately becoming undone. Delicate, precise and skilful. Something akin to admiration registered itself in his mind as he counted the few opportunities she had to perform the substitution jutsu._

_Bright peals of laughter as she revealed herself from her perch on the ceiling, taking most of them by surprise. Samehada, however, must have picked up the faint stirrings of chakra for Kisame barely batted an eyelid and merely appeared amused. _

_Thin chakra strings ran from the tips of her fingers to various control-joints on her clone at the doorway. _

_Then blue eyes dilated in dawning realisation that it wasn't a clone – but a wooden girl puppet that was standing in the path of his clay bomb. _

_"H-how…?!" He exclaimed. _

_Fury warred with confusion.  
_

_"_**Sasori**_." She said simply. _

_She offered no further explanation as she dropped lightly to the floor mere metres away from the blonde's baffled face, leaving him to ponder whether his partner was still alive, or whether she was even speaking the truth in the first place._

_But Haruno Sakura was fraught with secrets - secrets that she'd rather carry to her grave. _

_Sasori had indeed taught her…_

_She had simply refrained from telling them that he had taught her long _**after** _she killed him. _

* * *

**To be continued...**

**Source(s) of Inspiration**

A Ripple in the Pond Trilogy by **Lady Hanaka**

* * *

**A/N: **Yes that was a rather long prologue. Don't worry if that raised so many questions which made it too hard to follow. Chapter 1 _will_ give you some answers so please stay tuned xD. The beauty of planning a story is that you can do a _lot_ of foreshadowing and flashbacks etc. Hopefully this will keep you guessing and on your toes. For now, I hope you enjoyed a little _glimpse of the present_. No pun intended. xD_  
_


	2. Author's Notes

**Author's note:**

Hi guys, ^^

This is my very **first** fanfic, so I'd appreciate any constructive feedback. But please don't attack me! I have to confess that I am **not **a Naruto fan. I've stopped watching the anime shortly after the stream of fillers just before Shippuuden. Hence I will get a lot of facts wrong (any knowledge of what happens later in the series comes completely from other fanfics whether real or not). But who cares about facts anyway since it's a fanfic...the incredible feeling of having some sort of authority over what happens in the Narutoverse...ok, getting off track here...

Okay so why are you writing if you are not a fan of Naruto, you ask me? Well, I am actually a **naruto-fanfic-fan!** xD So this is a **fan-fanfic**if you will...

I stumbled across one of the sasusaku fanfics on here (in every sense of the word 'stumbled'. I was actually googling something when one of Mini-stacks's stories came up as the top results lol) and I was completely hooked.

So basically you'll find out pretty soon that my ideas aren't all that original - **big** disclaimer, I know. This is pretty much going to be a **mash-up** of the beautiful fruits of the imagination that **other brilliant minds** on have come up with. xD

I will be acknowledging them so check them out if you're interested in how "Ghost Whisperer" came about. Hopefully though I will have mashed together enough stories for it to have some semblance of originality lol. Nothing is worse than completely regurgitating somebody else's work.

And just for the record, I have gotten this story planned from beginning to end, so by all means work out subtle hints in each chapter to see where the story leads. There are obviously various plot holes in between but I hope that the flow of writing will just carry on smoothly.

And not to put anyone off but I am currently planning this as a trilogy. These titles here are not set in concrete but here they are all the same:  
Genshi trilogy (I think, or maybe not)  
Book 1: Ghost Whisperer  
Book 2: La Nina/Phenomenon  
Book 3: Ghostly Uprise/**The** Hidden Village - with the emphasis on '**the**' o(^▽^)o *sneaky laugh*

I can't promise but I am quite determined to finish this trilogy even if the reviews and audience reception sucks & although not now because I'm busy with exams, I will be updating consistently like once a fortnight or something like that once I get started on the second chapter. So if you even remotely like the first  
chapter I upload, please follow it and I'll do my best to keep you entertained :)

P.S. I will be writing in English (Australia) so beware of what **is** and what **is not** a spelling error.

impromptumelody xD

* * *

**Thanks to my reviewers: zenbon zakura, cxzw, anonymous**

I've taken your advice to heart ^^

**Thank you to all my followers** **and faves xD for trusting me before I've even started publishing!**

**_Lloigor, Fox3000Kitty, Scarlet-9s, delilah-smurple, tahrocs, zenbon zakura, A Spoonful of Honey, Art of Harmony, PoppyxHatake, 'time.i, purplefireferret..._  
**

* * *

**_21/11/12_**

**_Hey guys! I am currently on a 2-week vacation so it'll be a while until I upload the next chapter. But I'll be back so don't worry about this story not continuing! _**


	3. Chapter 1 - Years of Silence I

**_Hey guys, I am back! I will try to stick to my at least one chapter a fortnight thing seeing as it is Xmas holidays and like I promised, the first chapter is finally out! _**

**_Thank you to my followers and reviewers for your support ;)_**

Lloiger, zenbon zakura, aj07to, Yashamaru Kotohime, Regin, amber-tehkitsu, asht, slytherinblellie, Midori Heiwa, SomebodyLost, lildevil0644, Sibrael, Melyss, Celly-bee, Snowflower123, cherrys=and-strawberrys and i. spring' time. i!

* * *

**CHAPTER ONE**

Years of Silence

* * *

**_6 years ago…_**

Ocean blue eyes flickered to the door of her shop as a dark lanky figure entered with his trademark lazy gait, rustling the silver wind chimes at the entrance. She abandoned the half-wrapped violet irises on the counter, mildly surprised to read the tell-tale signs of haste and agitation in his lean posture.

"What's wrong, Shikamaru? I know you're not here as a customer," she grumbled, annoyed at his lack of greeting or explanation. "So stop stalling and get out with it. I haven't got all day you know!"

He sighed, running a coarse hand through his jagged hair then letting it fall with a soft slap against his thigh. "Sakura. Have you seen her?"

"What?" Ino looked at him in disbelief.

"Tsunade sent me to look for her. Honestly, I don't know why this is _my _job but…"

"That girl? I haven't seen her in weeks! _Months_ even...!" Ino trailed off, biting her lip in sudden concern.

She would have been lying if she said she hadn't noticed that Sakura had been drifting apart from the rest of the Konoha rookies at an alarming rate, but she had always managed to ignore it, thinking that her boisterous rival would be up and going in no time. But lately, Sakura was simply not sighted anymore.

She had become a workaholic, spending all her available daylight hours cooped up in the hospital and whilst Ino greatly doubted that Sakura had learnt so much from Tsunade to become so _imperative_ to the hospital's operation in a couple of weeks, Sakura had proved to be a highly diligent student that was helping out in any little way she could.

Word had it that she had officially mastered superficial healing and was capable of dealing with more drastic injuries such as sprains, torn ligaments and moderate burns even. If she wasn't at the hospital training or dealing with lightly injured patients she would be in the library poring over medical scrolls or maybe even at the Hokage's tower offering to help the frustrated, bored-out-of-her-mind Hokage with her organisation and paperwork. She tended to overwork herself so much that Tsunade – who admittedly was more concerned about her than a sensei would be – ordered her to take a whole week off. It was hard to think that Tsunade's apprentice was the very same immature brat of a 12-year-old that had become her dear rival over the cursed dark-haired Uchiha.

Returning her attention to the situation at hand Ino realised just how…_gone_ the girl was for even Shikamaru to agree to look out for her. That guy _hated_ meddlesome stuff.

A tiny niggling of jealousy over how concerned everyone was over Sakura, _including_ Shikamaru, had her biting her lip again, and then flushing in mild embarrassment and shame as it dawned on her what and why exactly she was feeling that way.

Never mind herself, she had to think about Sakura! Ino sifted around with her thoughts and memories to conclude that while it had been no secret to anyone in Konoha that Sakura had been acting rather strangely no one had ever voiced it or done anything to counter it. Thinking that all she needed was a little time to herself to get over the stupid Uchiha – that _was _what Sakura was being overly upset with, wasn't it? - they had left her to her own devices, paying extra attention not to mention his taboo name.

Ino had just been a tad bit annoyed to find that the depth of the girl's feeling towards the Uchiha wholly surpassed her own especially if she was still mourning him half-a-year after the ungrateful bastard had left. Ino had had half-a-mind to beat some sense into the poor girl. If she had been anywhere near as…_resilient_ as yours truly (or at least that was what Ino thought) the damn girl would have gotten over the guy within a week after the bastard had shown his true colours. But Sakura had never shown any sign of recovering. Her grief was simply hidden under a placid mask that infuriatingly reminded Ino of the Uchiha's poker face. Kami, she had even become as reticent as him.

Haruno Sakura, _reticent_?

Months ago, Ino would have laughed till her tummy hurt if anyone had described her pink-haired rival in that way. But now Ino wasn't so sure. The girl had been so damn unresponsive to her questions, even more so at her taunts, that Ino had all but given up all her attempts to start a conversation with her.

"It's as if she's trying to fill the void by becoming the Uchiha herself," Ino muttered absent-mindedly.

Shikamura stiffened in front of her. Her eyes caught his mid-air and it was as if they had both had the same sudden epiphany.

"What if she's planning on running away after him?! Becoming a missing nin?!" Ino blurted out just as Shikamura exclaimed," "So _that's_ where she is!"

Ino stared at him mirroring his expression of surprise.

"WHAT?" They both exclaimed simultaneously.

Guess they weren't thinking the same thing after all.

"I heard a couple of rumours that someone's been loitering around near the Uchiha residential district up on the eastern side of the village…" Shikamaru explained.

"What in_ Kami's_ name is she doing _there_?!"

Shikamaru shrugged. But despite his earlier disbelief, his eyebrows furrowed with agitation. "Ino, you don't think that she'd actually _leave_ Konoha, do you?"

"What do you think?! If Naruto hadn't dragged his ass up the mountains to train with Jiraiya-sama indefinitely then I would have said 'Of course not!' But he's _not _here, _is he?_ He'sbeen gone for months; there's no-one here to keep her in check!

"Kami, I never would have thought that Naruto would be the one to keep _her_ in check..." Ino babbled on while Shikamaru sighed and walked out the door.

"SHIKAMARU! What are you doing?! I was talking to you! Don't just up and leav–"

"Sorry, Ino. The Hokage said it's urgent business. Honestly speaking I don't think Sakura would do anything as extreme as _leaving_ _Konoha_. She's got to be around here somewhere," Shikamaru grumbled.

He glared through squinted eyes at the scroll in his hands. To think that one of his first missions as a chuunin would be playing hide-and-seek – with _Sakura_ no less! _Troublesome_.

He groaned and palmed his forehead. "You two have a history together, don't you? Why don't you talk some sense into her…"

Ino was _not_ impressed.

"Why don't you put that _brain _of yours into some use_, _huh?! _CHUUNIN_-_SAN."_

Ino _was_ proud that Shikamaru had made it to Chuunin status so soon – well, of course she was peeved that _she_ had failed (it had been so chaotic with all the impending threats of war from Sand and Sound _and _everyone had failed too so she hardly bothered complain) – but she had no doubt that if anyone had deserved to pass then he would have been the one. The only thing that _did _bother her, however, was how insufferably _lazy_ the boy was most of the time even if he _had_ proven to be a valuable asset to Konoha as a very cunning strategist.

He sighed and remained silent for a brief moment before placing his hands on the back of his head and ambling out the doorway. "Go get the girls. We split up and find her before Tsunade kills me."

With a final utterance of the word _troublesome_ he vanished from the doorway. Ino called out to her mother then without further ado set off to find the other female members of Konoha Rookie Twelve. _Eleven, _she corrected herself.

Damned Uchiha.

Before long Shikamaru had gone searching down the southern end of the village; despite his deductions that Sakura was most probably in the eastern side no amount of reasoning could have forced him to enter a place that was so, ehem, 'conspicuously cursed'. The timid Hinata had likewise rather assertively suggested that she would be better off searching the northern entrance to the village and the surround cliff-faces. Tenten had put up a calm and valiant exterior and happily announced that it was decided that she should search the central and western side of the village for Ino who daily delved in all mental and psychological aspects of ninjutsu should be the one to brave the haunted Uchiha district.

It was no wonder then that Ino was left grumbling and scowling as she made her way to the eastern wing of the village. For once she was tempted to agree with her lazy companion; this was a _very _troublesome mission indeed. Dimly she wondered why Lee, Chouji, Neiji and Kiba hadn't been sent to help – surely with the byakugan and the Inuzuka's astute sense of smell they would have easily tracked Sakura down. Then she remembered that they had been sent off on a mission to Tea Country with Gai; Tenten had thrown a famous fit about being left off the mission roster for days. The bug-infested Shino was busy on an insect-scavenging trip up the mountain-side with his family; it would take up the whole day.

Ino's silent fuming paved a clear path in the crowded streets all the way to the cold comfort of the pine woods that marked the start of the Uchiha residential district.

* * *

**_To be continued…_**

* * *

**_A/N: _****Reviews greatly appreciated! Btw, I am thinking of uploading an EXTRA/BONUS chapter that theoretically fits in with Ghost Whisperer once I update two more chapters. After all I thought that it'd be a long time before Sasuke makes an appearance.**


	4. Chapter 2 - Years of Silence II

_**Author's note: ******__Aha! Another update! Either the story_**_'_****_s getting easier to write or I_****_'_****_m getting better at this. LOL._**

**_Here's the full Chapter 2! :D__  
_**

**_Many thanks to:  
_**

_XxPyro-SamaxX, The Woman on a Flaming Pie, Narutofan3721, Vadergirl102, ChicFreakSistaFierce, Lloigor, Zenbon Zakura, Voxytoo and golden lily anime girl...**for taking the time to follow/fave/review!**  
_

* * *

**CHAPTER TWO**

Years of Silence II

* * *

_The thirteen-year-old girl stood unmoving on top of the grey stagnant water, hands held loosely by her side, slim face turned upwards towards the only patches of the sky that was visible through the dense canopy of leaves. The wind rustled the leaves above her but other than that there is a solemn, dead silence; no birds fluttered about the lonely residence offering cheerful melodic tunes; the turbid water was so still not a gurgle or rush could be heard. After a long-minute dull emerald eyes slid open; cracked and dry pale lips parted slightly as she inhaled the cold forest air._

_The lack of sunlight filtering through the forest canopy did little to mask the haunted hollowness of Sakura's gaze._

_She was at home in the landscape, fitting into the still-life portrait through her own lack of movement. Both feet were perfectly balanced on the surface of the water; no ripples disturbed the stream._

_The flow of chakra keeping her afloat was constant and precise but Sakura was hardly aware. With her eyes closed she imagined that she was fully-submerged beneath that surface; drowning in the frigid water; drowning in her sorrows. It wasn't that hard to imagine._

_It had only been 3 days since her forced 'break' from work had started but already she felt as if her life was slipping out of her hands. When she wasn't in the hospital, the library, helping others, researching medical jutsu - doing_ **something**_ - then certain thoughts would turn up to plague her mind. Questions of what she was worth, why she was still living and breathing, why she was still doing anything...Who was Haruno Sakura if she wasn't being...useful to anyone?_

_It was because she was so utterly_ **useless** _that Sasuke had left. She hadn't been able to do a single thing to make him stay. Her love hadn't been good enough for him._ It would never be,_ she realised._

_She bent down abruptly to pick a fallen twig off the surface of the water, ripples fluttered out where her butterfly-light touch disturbed it, only to toss it back into the water further down-stream. _

_Despite all that she had achieved since Tsunade had taken her under her wing Sakura's insecurities had lingered. Thoughts that she would never be good enough were embedded so deeply within her that they scarred her._ **Weak and helpless.** _That was how she would describe herself._ _Perhaps maybe even 'annoying.'_

_But Sakura knew that she wasn't completely to blame. The boys had always been so over-protective, rushing headlong into the fights, leaving her behind to watch in the shadows, that in the end she hadn't been able to accomplish anything by herself._ _ Naruto and Sasuke. They were the only reason Team 7 had successfully completed their missions_. _She was nothing but a dead weight; the helpless burden of the team._

_Of course then, their lazy ass of a sensei had been to blame too. It was obvious that he favoured the other two boys. He hadn't ever really taught her anything - besides that climbing the tree exercise, which she had pretty much completed by herself and perhaps a life-long lesson of patience. Waiting for the sensei that would always come late; waiting for the guidance that never appeared. Even now after Sasuke had left and Naruto had gone to the mountains to train with one of the legendary sannin, Kakashi refused to guide her. It had been Tsunade who had taken over his role as mentor. _

Maybe Kakashi had forseen that she would never amount to much.

_She sniffled and tossed the twig back into the water. _

She had never even had the **potential_._**

Did she even have hope?

_A presence flickered into life behind her and Sakura turned around slowly._ _"_Oh, it's you...again_."_

* * *

"...-_kun_!"

Ino stiffened in the shadows of the looming pine trees unable to register the sight unfurling before her.

She had walked through the woods for half-an-hour - _half-an-hour - _for _this?! _

Her objective stood on the opposite riverbank, emerald eyes glazed over and haggard face peering down at something in the distance.

Ino watched spellbound as Sakura raked a hand through a head of unkempt pink locks and sighed in exasperation. Sakura walked back over the water's surface reluctantly and kneeled down in front of something Ino couldn't see.

_What the hell was the girl doing?_

Ino stifled a gasp as she watched Sakura stroked and patted the thing, flashed a rare smile then began conversing with the air. "…-kun,"

_Kami, Sakura is _talking _to the air! _

Ino was too far away to make out her words but it seemed to her that Sakura was speaking quite affectionately.

Then suddenly it was as if she had heard Ino's thoughts for her head suddenly whipped around presenting Ino with a horrifying sight of melancholic green eyes. Soulless.

_…__Insane! She__'__s insane!_

Dim, emerald eyes darted over to the left of Ino who resisted the urge to run as the mournful gaze turned slightly questioning.

"…What?!" Ino squeaked.

_Why are you looking at me like that?!  
_  
Sakura blinked and continued to stare at the spot just to the left of Ino's waist.

"You know him?" Sakura asked finally.

_"_W-who?" Ino blinked twice and hastily surveyed everything within a 20-metre radius of herself in a sudden panic. _There was no-one. _Ino sighed with relief.

_Kami, what the hell was _**wrong**_ with the girl?!_

Sakura raised a hand to gesture beside Ino.

"Tarou-kun," she answered matter-of-factly.

"Quit it, Sakura! I am NOT going to get scared!" Ino shrieked indignantly, hands rising to her hips.

Viridian eyes merely dilated in strange wonder.

"Ino, your…elbow is jutting right through him…"

"I-I said, QUIT IT!"

An involuntary shiver came down the blonde's spine; Ino glared accusingly at Sakura.

Sakura's eyes widened even more. "Y-you...can't... see him…" she realised aloud.

Ino huffed but Sakura was no longer paying any attention to her; she had begun talking to herself again.

"You tricked me, Tarou-kun…you're not really here; I was always…alone…"

"Always alone..." Sakura echoed again.

All of a sudden the girl seemed to find it amusing; she tossed her head back and laughed weakly.

"Hey _Ino, _**you're not really standing in front of me**_ **either**_."

It was as if Sakura had thrown a bucket of ice-cold water over her head. Ino's mouth opened and closed like a goldfish breathing for air.

"…H-Haruno Sa-ku-ra!"

Sakura simply smiled that eerie half-smile of hers that clashed so disturbingly with her mournful gaze and something within Ino just snapped.

"Is he worth it, Sakura?!" She hissed with fury.

Sakura stared at her bemused.

"Tell me _Sakura_, is the Uchiha worth _that_ much?"

The half-smile vanished off Sakura's face much to the irate blonde's relief.

"Wha-? So you really _are_ here..._Why?_"

It was as if all her emotions washed off her face leaving it blank, cool and composed again but Ino knew better than to think they were gone for good. The poker face had simply risen back into play and it infuriated Ino to no end. Why?_ The girl had the nerve to ask her _**why**?

Ino was speechless.

"Is there anything wrong?" Sakura asked coldly.

"-_I SHOULD BE THE ONE ASKING YOU THAT!_" Ino screamed. "Kami what is _wrong _with you, Forehead?!

"DON'T YOU _DARE_ GIVE ME THAT LOOK! I know _exactly _what I'm talking about! Did you think that I've never SEENyou, Sakura?! Your stupid professional mask and that haunted blank look in your eyes? _Sakura_, your smile is as fake as Sai's!"

Sakura's lips settled into a firm, grim line but she refused to satisfy Ino with an answer.

If she had still been the Sakura that Ino knew the girl would have already broken out into vehement, ferocious denial but this Sakura was obviously refusing to be anything but normal.

Sai, the emotionally-constipated Root member who had taken it upon himself to 'acquaint' himself more fully with the village ever since Danzo 'suggested' Uchiha Sasuke be replaced; the guy with a penchant for riling people up with his foul mouth...it was no secret that within a day he had successfully woven his way under Sakura's skin with his ridiculous nicknames. Yet lately he had barely caused the girl to bat an eyelid. At least when Naruto had been here Sakura had responded to Sai's insults with impressive, hot fury.

_Did you know? When I first heard your voice by the stream I thought you would drown yourself? I thought you were going to commit **suicide**, Sakura! Did you know that?! _

Ino would never admit how concerned she was for Sakura. Her life-long rival wasn't meant to be so mentally weak that Ino feared she would fade into non-existence. She would vanish into thin-air while no one was watching. _Her_ Sakura had personality, Ino wanted to say. _Her _Sakura was strong. Ino refused to accept that this weak-willed, hollow girl standing in front of her was _the _Haruno Sakura.

Ino wanted to scream at the Sakura before her, but instead she forced her voice into a semblance of calmness refusing to let this...this _stranger _parading around like Sakura break her.

"What's gotten into you, Sakura?" Ino asked softly. Her voice was grainy; hoarse with barely-suppressed emotion.

Sakura was silent.

"...You never turn up at the training grounds anymore. Don't you consider yourself a ninja anymore, Sakura? Why don't you train anymore? Or maybe you just don't train in front of us - is that it? _You don't want to be around the rest of us_?"

More silence.

"ANSWER ME!" Ino roared.

"And don't you _dare_ lie to me! You think I can't tell? I've been working my ass off on my mind jutsus...Where _were_ you Sakura? Where _were_ you and what were you _doing_ while the rest of us have been breaking sweat trying to make it to the next chuunin exams?!"

"SHUT-UP INO-PIG!"

Ino looked up, her heart beating wildly in her chest trying to register the fact that she had finally made Sakura crack.

_Sakura was back! Sakura was back! Sakura was -_

"**What do _you_ know, Ino?**"

Sakura's voice was low and bitter.

Disappointment flooded through the blonde. Sakura..._wasn't back yet. _

_Try me,_ Ino wanted to say. _You've never let me try, Sakura._

Sakura laughed ruefully. "Or maybe you _**do** _know...Do you want to rub in the fact that you still have a friggin' team; whereas**_ I_ **don't? That you still have a means to become a ninja out on the fields; whereas **_I_** don't? Leave me _alone_, Ino! You've already _won_...!"

Sakura clenched her fists and swallowed, the vulnerable column of her throat constricting and dropping emphatically.

"**He l-left me, Ino.**"

Ino inhaled sharply. Sakura's poker face had come back into play; her words cold, callous and indifferent once more.

**"I...wasn't enough to keep him from leaving." **_You would never know that I begged him - literally begged him - to take me with him._

Part of Ino was satisfied that Sakura was finally talking to her. Another part of her was thoroughly disgusted that Sakura still thought that way of her. But the most important part of her knew - _knew_ but could not hope to understand - how hopelessly abandoned Sakura must have felt all those months.

.

"Bullshit."

Sakura looked up.

"BULLSHIT." Ino screamed. "I already asked you, _Sakura_! Was he - _IS he_ - WORTH IT?!"

Her throat was dry; Ino was so damn close to tears and Sakura... knew it.

Ino sniffled and looked away.

_Was he worth their grief? Had he been worth their love? Sakura's soul? Their **friendship**?_

If he was then Sasuke was a bloody murderer; he had taken away the Sakura she knew and Ino would never forgive him.

"Do you really think that I think in that way?"

_Do you, Sakura? _

_"**...**_**Cos that's just BULLSHIT**."

Then Sakura was crying like she had never cried before. And she hadn't. Ever since he'd left her lying cold and defenceless on the stiff wooden bench.

**"_Ino-pig._"**

Sakura was crying and Ino was salvaging the broken pieces of her dear rival and beloved friend's heart. _"Ino-pig." _

_"_Who was I supposed to turn up with, Ino-pig?_ Who was I supposed to turn up to the training with?" _

Cradling the sobbing girl in her arms and trying desperately to alleviate her loneliness, Ino realised yet another thing about her friend.

That it hadn't been so much her love for Sasuke but the disintegration of her team, the lack of support that had truly broken her.

Sakura had been trying to forget about her team's abandonment by burying herself up to the nose in medical scrolls; volunteering excruciatingly long hours at the hospital.

She had been trying to do something about it, Ino realised.

And in that instant Ino was satisfied.

_Her _Sakura wasn't that weak to crumble over love. _Her _Sakura wouldn't just give up on life like that.

Whispering soft, apologetic words Ino lifted up a hand to stroke her friend's head. Coincidentally, it reminded Ino of a time when a silly pink-haired girl with bright veridian eyes and an unfortunately wide forehead came running away from her bullies straight into Ino's protective arms.

_Sakura was back._

It would be just like old times - way back before that stupid Uchiha had come into the picture and split them up. Kami tell her why she had ever been so foolish as to choose the cold Uchiha over Sakura.

Sakura snuggled deeper into Ino's warm embrace and the action sent more memories churning and whirling between them.

_~I'll protect you, Sakura!_

Then suddenly Sakura was pushing Ino away gently but firmly and Ino hesitantly relinquished her hold.

"No Ino." Sakura said softly.

She lifted her head up to gaze resolutely at Ino with piercing emerald eyes. Her shoulders and back straightened automatically in the process.

"I don't want to be protected anymore. **I..._want _**_**to be strong enough to hold Team 7 up on my own**."_

Her last words were spoken so softly Ino thought she had imagined it; ocean blue eyes dilated in wonder.

Then Sakura had left, walking away steadily in the strips of sunlight that filtered through the forest canopy and fading from view as if... as if she had brushed Ino off.

But Ino knew better.

_Team 7. Want. Strong._

Ino smiled. She had finally gotten through to her.

xXXXx

_A week later a pink-haired girl would turn up to the public training ground, hands behind her back fiddling nervously, eyes lowered to the ground. There would be no curious gazes._

_"Forehead," Ino says, her grin barely concealed. She flips over to tap Sakura's back and begin launching a rapid series of attacks. "I'm not gonna go easy on you."_

_To Sakura's delight and surprise Hinata would timidly enter the match, closely-followed by Tenten; making it a free-for-all. _

_Then suddenly even the stoic Neiji, the lethargic Shikamaru and an amused Chouji is in._

_ Rock Lee stands on the sideliness for once, weeping tears of happiness._

_.  
_

**Sakura...You're not alone.**

* * *

**__****_The End..._**

**__****_Jokes! It is NOT over! _**

**__****__****__****_NEXT CHAPTER UZUMAKI NARUTO RETURNS! _**

_______(____Yes, a 3-year-time-skip! ________)_**__****__****__****_  
_**

* * *

**_Source(s) of Inspiration_**

The Way of the Wind by **just enough**

* * *

**__****_Please review._**


	5. Chapter 3 - Day of Return I

**_A/N: Hey guys, did you really think Sakura was going to be happy, get stronger - strong enough to bring Sasuke back - and then make Itachi fall in love with her on the way? xD._**

**_Okay, that's what I thought some of you might have thought. Well, I can't really tell seeing as there aren't many reviews. Please tell me what you are thinking, guessing etc. It might give me ideas and ideas = faster updates lol._**

**_Well, here's the "full version" *_**

**_*I just realised that this chapter is HUGE. So I decided to cut it to about 3 parts (I, II, III) and upload whatever I finish first for you guys. I'll get back to editing it later, so bear with me. _**

**_...Enjoy!_**

* * *

**_Chapter 3 _**

_Day of Return I_

* * *

_She hadn't known why she had come there again._

_Everyone had accepted her so spontaneously at the training grounds that for a whole day she had forgotten her loneliness. They had been waiting for her, she had realised. Waiting for her to get over her grief and appear in front of them only when she was ready. That was the only reason they had left her alone._

_That realisation lifted her out from the depths of her depression yet the deep ache of loneliness within her never ceased._

_And that was why she was there again. Perhaps. By the stagnant river, gazing at the full-moon in the forest night sky. It was hauntingly beautiful._

_In the night as opposed to the morning this place was filled with sounds. Shrill winds twisted and tore around the empty homes of the abandoned Uchiha district. It sent the leaves whipping around her in a dark conspiracy._

_And she was by the river, a clandestine figure attempting a rendezvous with the ethereal. Her pale skin was luminous under the moonlight; her vivid locks a stunning baby pink._

_The wind whispered against her neck then she felt a presence spring up behind her, waiting for her to turn around._

_"T-Tarou-kun?"_

_Her voice was a mixture of disbelief, fear, anticipation and wonder._

_Like she couldn't believe he actually existed._

_That the kid hadn't been just some crazy figment of her imagination that she had invented out of sheer loneliness. She hadn't been in the right mind, after all._

_Yet there he was, perched on a tree branch ahead - wasn't he behind her just before? She shook her head and blinked twice._

_The boy grinned, flashing a neat row of pearly white teeth that stood out some handsomely with his dark raven-locks. But he was just a kid. What was he...seven? Eight, maybe?_

_"You know, Sakura-neechan. All this time I thought you were like me. But I was wrong; you're...still alive."_

_Sakura stared at him with wide emeral orbs, dumbfounded._

_Then he was leaning back against the tree trunk, grinning like a cheshire cat, unconcerned about her lack of reply._

_"I put two and two together when that blonde-neechan came and she could see you but not me."_

_He leaned forward on tip-toe and played with the ends of her bubblegum hair in his small, childish hands. "I can touch you, neechan, but I couldn't touch her. Unlike Neechan she can't see or hear me."_

_She lost some of her stupor and disentangled his fingers from her hair._

_He pouted earning an uncertain smile from her as she tried to come to terms with what was going on; what he was telling her and what it actually meant to her. He hadn't told her anything that she hadn't already known but she was in denial._

_Forgetting how she had rejected him earlier, he stretched out his palm and grasped one of her hands in his smaller one. Then he lead her along the stream, out of the forest and into the open air of the residency before spinning around with an excited gleam in his eyes. The light of the full moon reflected in his glossy charcoal orbs._

_"Neechan, why aren't you asking me anything? Aren't you curious...about how I died?"_

_Only later would she wonder as to why she could see the boy and Ino couldn't. The only reason she would come up with was that maybe it was because she had been half-dead. Well, emotionally at least._

_For now though she was occupied with the sudden chill in his voice; the naive black orbs that were full of vengeance. She hadn't known a kid look so terrifying. So insane._

_Again it would be much much later before she would reflect on how creeped out Ino must have been to find her talking to someone she couldn't see._

_But her eyes were being captivated by the familiar thirst for revenge in his young eyes._

_Suddenly she knew why those dark locks, pale skin and onyx eyes reminded her so much of _**him.**

_"No," she murmured softly but urgently._

_"No, I don't want to know."_

_Tarou's eyes flashed an angry bright crimson confirming what she had already surmised._

_._

_He was an Uchiha._

_._

_Maybe it was curiosity. Maybe it was kindness. Either way she would give in to his request and listen to his life's story._

_And when it was over she knew that she wouldn't be seeing him again. He would have finally came to terms with his death. The anger of being killed unknowingly in his sleep by a traitor of his clan would finally be dissipated by his story-telling._

_"Do you know what I felt like to wake up and find that i was dead? That we were all dead? Mommy and Daddy...Uncle...everyone. Do you know how angry I was when I realised that I couldn't even tell a living soul what had happened? That my death like everyone else would remain a bloody mystery?"_

_His words had been feverish. "I hadn't been content to move on like others did."_

_But now his voice melted into leisure and contentment._

_"Now, I can," he said with a small parting smile. "Cos I was able to tell you...Sakura-neechan."_

_In the space of a few seconds he would vanish right before her eyes. The bright cheshire grin on his lips would be the last to fade._

_And she would cry herself to sleep with nothing but the blanket of the night sky draped over her._

_She would never see him again._

_But that would only be the first of many sleepless nights she spent listening to the dark tales of the dead. _

* * *

**3 years later...**

Under the gentle warmth of the sun and within the soothing affection of the spring breezes, a tall slim blonde leisurely made her way to the guard desk at the main north entrance of the village. The spiky-haired jounin stationed behind the desk along with his partner looked up and smiled. It crinkled the nose bandage that he always wore around his face. "Morning Ino-san. What do you have for us?"

His partner shifted his bandana slightly to ease an itch without scratching it unhygienically and gave her a small polite smile.

"Morning Kotetsu-san, Izumo-san," Ino replied, her lips stretching to a wide smile of her own. She reached into her pocket for a scroll and handed it over to them.

"So...have any interesting news yet?" she joked, noting how bored they both looked. Hell they had both brightened up just to see her walk up to their desk.

Surprisingly, Kotetsu flashed back a taunting, confident smirk. "Actually...if you had come across us a quarter of an hour ago you would have seen something."

Ino looked at them pointedly. "Well?"

Satisfied that he had her all curious, Kotetsu now had his lips firmly shut. Ino mock-sighed in amused exasperation and a grinning Izumo decided to spoil Kotetsu's fun.

"Guess who's back?"

Ino froze.

"Yep, the kid's finally ba - where are you going?!" Kotetsu exclaimed.

Ino had wordlessly broken out into a run towards the eastern side of the village.

"He went **_THAT_**_" _- Izumo yelled after her, gesturing in the opposite direction "-WAY, you know?!"

Ino showed no signs of hearing him as she rounded the corner and disappeared from their view.

Kotetsu caught his partner's disbelieving gaze and chuckled. "Man, aren't people glad that the kid's back!"

Izumo had to agree.

* * *

_Sakura! _ Ino thought, a huge smile lighting up her face from anticipating her friend's reaction. _He's finally back. _

She shot through the village, hastily dodging the people on the streets and plunging them into a state of bewilderment and chaos.

"Hey - whoa - what's going on, neechan?!"

Ino twisted her head back to answer him. "He's back, Konohamaru. Naruto's back! Oh and he went _that_ way!"

Then Konohamaru was left in the midst of the streets beaming like an idiot, people were whispering fondly about the news and Ino decided her pace was too slow and leapt onto the rooftop with a burst of chakra.

She wasn't searching. She knew _exactly_ where Sakura would be on her daily morning walk. It was a habit that Ino had grudgingly accepted.

Ino panted and paused slightly to regain her breath.

Ever since that fateful day the distance between them had grown shorter and shorter still. Yet there was also a distance she couldn't breach. There was still something that was separating Sakura from her. It was Ino's intuition that told her that. For Sakura had transformed overnight laughing joyously, smiling brightly... and no matter how much Ino wished she was truly happy there was a tiny niggling at the back of her mind that told her: it was superficial; Sakura was acting.

Her acting was seamless - Sakura's smile could bring out the best in the most moodiest of people - but it was no different if not an upgraded version of the poker face she had always worn.

Ino had not given up on her, _no way,_ but she understood and knew it would be a breach of trust to spy on Sakura while she found solace in the woods. It was a mutual understanding and Sakura respected her for it.

_But now _**he **_was back! _

Perhaps a missing piece of Sakura's heart that Ino had failed to recover would finally fall into place.

The corner of her lips quirked up and she launched herself off the rooftop, her excitement replenishing her chakra aplenty. She couldn't wait to see her reaction.

"SAKURA!"

Birds and crows instantaneously spread their wings and flew off, frightened out of their perches by the exuberant shout.

Below the trees a serene figure lying on the tranquil river shifted slightly in amusement, a smile breaking out on her lips at the sound of her friend's arrival.

Vivid veridian eyes flickered open in a startlingly beautiful heart-shaped face, a forehead that was perhaps wider than most but captivatingly so in the way that lent elegance and maturity to her seemingly innocent gaze.

Sakura had heard her coming for minutes now, her chakra surging and dipping frantically, her footsteps crunching the leaves at her feet, her short breaths disturbing the still forest air.

Ino sprang out enthusiastically from the cover of trees and bent down to recover with her hands braced on her knees. Her waist-long ponytail swung over to her front and splayed out on her legs with the movement.

"S-sakura..." she said between deep breaths, looking at the smiling girl that was still floating on her back in the river.

"I could hear you coming metres away, Ino-pig," Sakura chuckled affectionately. "Are you still trying to sneak up on me?"

"Save it...!" Ino retorted, rolling her eyes. "I've got something more important to say."

Years of attempting and failing to snoop on Sakura had taught her that friend wasn't human. Her sense of hearing and smelling shouldn't be and wasn't as good as Kiba's; her vision did not parallel Neiji's. Yet Sakura had always been able to tell when Ino was approaching, or when anyone was approaching and why. Kami, she could even predict why they were coming to _see_ her in the first place!

But this time Ino had some news that would actually be 'news' to her.

Gazing at Sakura's expectant face, a smug smirk appeared on Ino's face. "You'll never who's back in Konoha!"

She was rewarded with a satisfying one-second glimpse of Sakura being caught off-guard. Then the girl jerked off the water's surface, long wet pink strands whipping up and clinging onto pale skin; green eyes brightened and an unconscious smile broke out on her lips.

_That smile wasn't fake, _Ino noted.

* * *

"It's been about three years..."

"Yeah, so it has..."

The spirited youth flashed a bright smile at the curious and flustered villagers nearby and abruptly clenched his right hand into a fist as he sighted a target in the distance. "Alrighty...!"

The white-haired middle-aged man fondly followed his student's gaze and when he saw the object of the youth's fixation, chuckled and shook his head in amusement.

The boy bent his knees slightly he leapt about three metres high onto a wooden post, regulating a thin layer of chakra on the soles of his feet that allowed him to defy gravity. Swinging his arms for momentum he swiftly climbed up the post, inhaling sharply with exertion and finally leaping into the air and landing neatly balanced on the very top.

With arms open wide embracing the nostalgic Konoha spring air he turned his deep blue eyes towards the panoramic view of the village below and smiled widely. "Man, this village hasn't changed a bit!"

"Well except for the fact that Tsunade-baachan's face is on the Hokage rock monument now..."

Blonde hair ruffling in the breeze, eyes determined and teeth bared in a grin he announced to the world. "EVERYONE! UZUMAKI NARUTO'S BACK!"

He fisted the air with a bright laugh, his tender gaze sweeping the village below in a silent vow to protect his loved ones. Speaking of loved ones...

"WHOA. IT'S REAL! NARUTO NIICHAN'S BACK!" Small feet kicked up the dust on the ground as his faithful junior sped up to the base of the post leaving his friends to follow behind. "NARUTO-NIICHAN! YOU'RE BACK!"

_Konohamaru sure has gotten loud, _Naruto noted proudly. His high childish voice carried well and clear into the air.

"KONOHAMARU! YEAH! OF COURSE I'M BACK!" Naruto shouted back. His smile was so wide his eyes were almost squeezed shut but something a nostalgic shade of pink around the corner caught his gaze.

"NARUTO-! Is that you?!"

From the top of his perch Sakura looked the same as ever, bright emerald orbs, pale skin clothed in red and bubblegum hair. Dimly he was aware that Ino had also rounded the corner breathlessly.

"SAKURA-CHAAAAN!"

His exuberant shout was confirmation enough and he leapt off the pole, whiskers folding back against his face and jagged golden hair stirring restlessly in the updraught.

"Long time no see, Sakura-chan!"

Her eyes widened slightly at his softer and deeper voice. The breeze played with the clothed ends of his hitai-ate (forehead protector) and with his earnest blue eyes and taller, stronger build Sakura couldn't help smiling.

She had never told him so, but to her he had always been the epitome of a hero. Brilliant veracious blue eyes, sun-kissed hair and optimistic smile...he'd always brought out the best in her. _Naruto, Naruto, Naruto..._

Her mind was chanting his name like a mantra, willing him to see the glistening tears she'd ironically kept brimming in her eyes, the deep scars in her heart and mind that she had thought she could heal alone.

_Naruto, Naruto, Naruto... _

It had always been so easy to leave everything to him and simply believe in his undying promises.

Could she bring herself to do so again?

Could he save her from herself?

She had not doubt that if anyone could it would be him.

But it wouldn't be fair...

_No it wouldn't be fair to spoil the innocent optimism he had for the world._

Ino stood a short distance away watching the tender scene unfold; fingers crossed; gaze expectant.

She breathed a heavy sigh of relief as the Sakura's mannerisms visibly brightened, emerald eyes crinkling and cheeks blushing as she asked Naruto if she had become more womanly at all, to which Naruto hastily reassured her she hadn't changed at all even though Sakura's hair had obviously grown hip-length.

Then she was satisfied as an extremely peeved look crossed her friend's face and the girl huffed angrily and turned away.

_Leave it to Naruto to close the distance,_ Ino thought.

Whilst Jiraiya looked on amusedly at the stunted emotional maturity of his student in regards to the opposite sex, Ino silently left with an small flicker of approval for the blonde.

She was glad he was back but more than that Ino was happy for Sakura.

And so as she turned away, she didn't see the regretful smile that Sakura had on her face as she noted that Naruto hadn't nearly as changed as much as she had in the three years they spent apart. Sakura was smiling, chatting, bottling the chaos of emotions within in and hanging on vigorously to that facade of normalcy.

Ino did not realise that Sakura was holding onto a faint sliver of hope that Naruto would help her recover the naive and carefree young girl she had been in the past. But that was just it. Sakura was holding onto dying embers of hope that the boy - yes he was still a boy - could save her from her own darkness. And if she had it her way, he would do so without knowing.

Yes, whether he could save her or not she would make certain that he would never know of the dark cynicism in her heart. For him, she would become that blissfully unaware Sakura of the past once again. For him, she would do the dirty work; anything to protect the optimistic outlook the young shinobi had retained against all odd for the world. For her heart would break if Naruto ever became as tainted as she was.

"...Look over here! Naruto-niichan!"

Poofs of clouds and smoke appeared as Konohamaru's hands swiftly moved into an extremely familiar and nostalgic set of seals.

"Oiroke no Jutsu!"

A busty ebony-haired, stark naked young woman appeared in a ridiculously sexy pose. Notwithstanding that they woman displayed features that strikingly resembled the former young **young** genin, the white-haired middle-man proceeded to have an instantaneous and heavy nosebleed.

Sakura's pink eyebrows shot up so high they looked comical and her face was aghast. No acting necessary, she might add.

Naruto merely stood steadfast with an amused smile much to Konoha's disappointment and it made Sakura blink to see her blonde teammate look so serious and mature.

Perhaps she was wrong, she thought for a second. He had grown-up a bit after all.

Then the youth was announcing that he had developed a new and highly approved perverted jutsu and was about to quite unabashedly demonstrate it in front of the civilians too and Sakura was boiling a bright red in embarrassment and fury. A demonic glint hardened in her eyes belying the careful smile she kept glued onto her face, as she grabbed her dear teammate by the ear and proceeded to painfully haul him to the centre of the street so that she could deliver a most fittingly sadistic punishment.

"You idiot! What are you thinking doing a jutsu like that?! You haven't changed at all!"

Her non-chakra punch sent him paving a ten-metre-long dirt trail in the street and sporting a highly unpleasant bump on the top of his head. Thank Kami he wasn't suffering from hair loss. That would have made the humiliation of the attack twice as insulting.

Recovering from the shock and massaging his skin in order to alleviate the pain, Naruto visibly blanched as he realised Sakura was far from done. A vein ticked in her forehead and she flexed her biceps back and forth eerily. He could have sworn her punches were stronger than before...and since when had Sakura become so openly sadistic and threatening? The superficial smile had long fled her face and in their stead were two rows of pearly white teeth grinding against each other.

As Jiraiya marvelled at the young kunoichi's inheritance of Tsunade's short temper and the frightened genin ducked behind him in blatant fear, Naruto was forced to endure a heavy lecture about how he had literally quote forced her to do this to him after seeing each other for the first time in three years unquote.

"What am I supposed to do with the feelings of admiration I had for you earlier, huh?! Kami, I'm mad at myself!"

He could only nod his head urgently and hastily ask for forgiveness as she gripped him by the front of his vest and began shaking him violently.

"I'm not the least bit lonely at all!"

What he didn't know was that there was a deeper despair underlying her words and that this Sakura did not cry to vent her frustration. Anger was her only vent. Her exceedingly hot and short temper was not so much an inheritance from her mentor as a personal attribute that stemmed from her mental instability.

In other words, Sakura was not completely sane and she hadn't been so in years. Nightly escapades to the ghostly woods had ensured that. And whilst her heart yearned for the easy innocence of her childhood, her mind concluded that it was a dream that would never come true.

_Did you know, Naruto? There are some dreams that can never come true._

Could she ever bring herself to tell him that?

As Naruto brought the full attention of his deep and seemingly perceptive blue eyes on her face, tracing the slightly fuller lips, the long bubblegum strands and the dark sorrow in her veridian eyes, Sakura had to convince herself that she could keep the ugly truth of the world from him forever.

"Sakura-chan, you've gotten scarier!"

**"Huh? Did you ****_say_**** something, Naruto?!"**

* * *

_"Call Team 7 out to the third training grounds. I want them to show me how much they've progressed in the past three years immediately."_

_"Yes, Hokage-sama."_

* * *

Out on the third training grounds, a single crimson eye stares out in the evening light.

"Ehh?! KAKASHI-SENSEI!"

"...Sensei."

"Yo."

The white-haired masked shinobi crinkled his eyes and habitually held up two fingers.

"Nice to have you back, Naruto. Sakura."

The beaming blonde began shifting back and forth on the balls of his feet, obviously energized by the fact that his old sensei was about to be his new opponent.

"Oh mann, I've always wanted to redo the bell-test!"

Kakashi's gaze flickered to the quiet rosette by Naruto's side, his keen eyesight picking up a faint glimmer of some unknown emotion harden within her emerald gaze and the determined flat line of her mouth.

But as blue chakra began rising in the air and the Sharingan caught the boy's swift movement to his left pocket, he was forced to rip his gaze away and prematurely end his analysis of Sakura.

"LET'S GO!"

Six shurikens were thrown into the air, sharp blades spiralling and slicing the air above Kakashi's head. He had dodged low, left hand sneaking to his own side pocket to return the attack in like.

Naruto leapt into the air to dodge the onslaught of shuriken which Kakashi quickly noted left him wide open to attack; a second set of shuriken whirred into the air mercilessly aimed at the head. Without missing a beat his creative student used the momentum he gained from his kage bunshin to help him change direction midair.

The training gates were rattling as if someone had just entered and forgotten to close them, Kakashi noted as a undeterred Naruto performed a henge on his weapon, transforming it into a giant shuriken and rushing headlong at Kakashi.

The move brought back memories and Kakashi acted accordingly shifting and sliding so that he was behind his energetic student, one hand on the surprised youth's neck - a sign that he would have delivered the death blow - the other reining back the shuriken that was still in Naruto's grasp.

He's gotten pretty tall, Kakashi realised. A smile broke out on his lips as his Sharingan picked up the smug-looking Naruto clone holding a kunai in a would-have-been fatal attack to his waist.

_Your timing has gotten better. _"You're still as impatient as ever...I haven't even said start yet, have I?"

Naruto grinned sheepishly, justly reminded of how brash and hot-headed he had been in the past.

Jiraiya, perched precariously on top of a low tree branch just outside the perimeter of the training grounds, snorted and shared a look with the two females on the ground.

Tsunade was amused to say the least and Shizune pursed her lips in a smile.

Then Naruto and Kakashi relaxed and turned to find that Sakura had her back facing them, talking urgently to some dark-haired figure at the training gates.

"Hey...isn't that Sai?" Naruto questioned.

"Ah, so it is," Kakashi said nonchalantly. Yet his careful gaze was anything but. He picked up the slanted lines in his pink-haired student's posture, her upturned palms and gritted teeth. In fact, he would have given in to curiosity and walked up to them had it not been so conspicuous that Sakura was trying to keep quiet and that his astute sense of hearing meant that he could hear them anyway.

Sakura was obviously agitated, she should have known that he would be able to pick-up the faint whispers of her words. The root shinobi had no such qualms. He spoke levelly and his lips were in clear view of the Sharingan making it little effort to grasp the conversation.

..._Interesting._

Kakashi turned his head away and did his best to distract the curious blonde at his side who had just been about to approach them, blissfully unaware of the tension in the air.

_Sakura. What had happened to her during the three years Kakashi had stopped being her sensei?_

For once he felt a pang of guilt.

Because he realised he didn't know.

"Ne, Sakura-chan, what were you doing? Did you see me fighting with Kakashi-sensei? Did you?!" Naruto piped out as the pinkette walked towards him.

"My bad, Naruto. I'm ready now, Kakashi-sensei."

"I see."

"ALRIGHT! I'm so pumped for this now! SAY 'START' NOW, KAKASHI-SENSEI!"

"..."

"_KAKASHI-SENSEI!_!"

* * *

_**A/N: I'm not feeling so happy about this chapter, but what do you think? Please review. Hopefully it didn't suck too much. ** _

_***SIGH* Holidays are ending... :(**_

_Whoops, I almost forgot..._

**.  
**

**Source(s) of Inspiration  
**_**  
**_Shades of Grey _by **Lady Hanaka**  
_

Revolutionalized_ by **Lherien**_

_**...**and **Kishimoto's Naruto Shipuuden Episode 1 - "Homecoming" **of course!_


	6. Chapter 4 - Day of Return II

_**Thanks for the support from the following people:**_

_1/14/13 Anonymous reviewer, Marie, zenbon zakura, golden lily anime girl, S.A., 1/5/13 Guest, Sukutai Chiko, Laura-Jean95, KungPowKira3, 1Animefreakgurl, Nyx'sWings, Poch00Deea, beliee, janiisaur, moonlightkissed, Guest 1/15/13, Koko-chan 1/16/13, it's really good' 1/14/13, Colour of Crazy, Tigermage, sasyd, dotted-daffodil, Lylan Alainn Shade, Scratch1892, ViEN-Ti, tuttachechka, L.M.D.A.A, Chibified-chan, beebee7, gemaima11...**  
**_

_**This chapter is especially dedicated to 2 guest reviewers: **_

___"Koko-chan" 1/16/13 _

___And "it's really good" 1/14/13._

* * *

**Chapter 4 **

**Day of Return II**

* * *

_Cerulean eyes flickered with concern as she watched the pinkette tip forward precariously and only just managed to sway back in time to catch her footing on the tree. _

_That was the_ sixth _time today;_ The girl was practically sleeping on her feet!

_Ino bit back the urge to confront Sakura about the dark shadows under her eyes again. After all the pinkette had assured her it was only a mild bout of insomnia._ That _much, however, Ino _had_ deduced. What she _really_ wanted to know was what had brought it along in the first place? _

_A quick glance at Sakura's face showed deep, sunken eye-bags standing at a stark contrast to the pale, purplish skin of her droopy eyelids. _

_The girl was utterly physically and mentally drained - no doubt about it - the weariness had set into her bones_.

What in Kami's name was it that plagued Sakura during the nights?

_Ever since Ino had found Sakura by the Imi River in the Uchiha district, Sakura had been turning up to morning training sessions barely awake and completely exhausted -as if she hadn't slept a wink!_

_ Yet it was only a week later when Sakura began the habit of going on very long and contemplative morning walks through the very same district. _

_Waking up so damn early all the time was bound to take its toll on her - considering her status as a medic ninja Sakura should have known that - yet nothing Ino could say or do had stopped the girl from her infuriating habit. _

_Ino shook her head in exasperation. _

_Sakura needed a damn_ _long rest and she was going to get it _now_._

_Just look at the girl! How the hell did she plan to carry out the mission if she was already asleep on her feet?_

_"_Forehead! We're taking a break. **Get some rest**_.__"_

_It was uncharacteristic of Ino to give an order to the team but as Shikamaru turned back with a knowing glance at Sakura there was no doubt that she would be heeded. _

_Sakura simply stiffened slightly before giving an obscure nod. _

_Normally she would have lashed out in irrational anger at the fact that they thought she was compromising the team.__But no matter how many times she had denied how tired she was she had to admit that at this rate she wasn__'__t going to be much of an asset to a team as a liability. Hell she couldn__'__t even find the energy to get angry._

_Sakura scowled. _

_Those damn ghosts were completely to blame for how utterly exhausted she was right now. Always following her around, even going so far as to rattle the windows of her apartment to demand her attention. Ino was growing increasingly concerned and if she had to be honest Sakura was getting pretty desperate for some sleep herself. _

_Sakura sighed. _What if she tried to block out all her senses - surely it'd stop her from detecting those pestering spirits as well?

_As the team swiftly set up camp under the dense cover of the forest canopy, Sakura only spared a tiny second of reluctance. Blocking all your senses out in an open mission like this spelt certain death for a shinobi. But if it worked then she would have to resort to it. Desperation called for desperate measures after all. _

_Calling chakra to circulate evenly around her ears she sighed anxiously as the forest sounds grew increasingly muffled until all that she could hear was the beating of her own heart. _

**It was working.**

_Relief washed over her. _

_She closed her eyes and willed herself to let go of every single strand of awareness she had of the outside world; her honed senses as a shinobi and the long ingrained drive for self-preservation. It was only a matter of seconds until she was drifting into the dark embrace of long-overdue sleep._

_._

_Ino suppressed the urge to snicker as the loud snores of a certain pink-haired kunoichi abruptly pierced through the air startling Kiba and the rest._

**Ohhh, the humiliation. ****Just wait until you wake up, Forehead**_,_ _she thought with glee._

_Her gaze softened into an oddly affectionate look as she turned in her own sleeping bag to look at her friend's face.__ She didn't fail to notice the beginnings of drool at the corner of the pinkette's mouth; her own lips twitched into a malicious grin._

**Serves you right for not getting your sleep, Forehead. **

* * *

Sakura smiled thinly at the excitement radiating off her blonde team-mate's face.

Good to know that some things never change.

Then she noticed that Kakashi was staring at her as if he was trying to figure something out and somehow that really got on her nerves.

_What? Can't figure me out anymore? Didn't you expect that? You haven't exactly been around have you?_

Biting back unpleasant words she schooled her lips into a childish grin.

"Kakashi-sensei...you're not going to go easy on us this time."

She slid her hands into the flexible, black gloves, stretching the elastic so that it snapped back on her wrists with a satisfying sound.

To her relief Kakashi appeared amused. "Okay, let's begin."

Emerald eyes shifted into a smug excitement reminiscent of her genin days. Inwardly however she cringed and a passive anger stirred within her belly. She knew she had years to perfect her acting but she hadn't been sure it would have passed Kakashi's watchful gaze. Looks like she had nothing to fear; he hadn't known her all that well it seemed.

..._Had she actually been hoping that he'd see through her act? _

Disbelief washed over her. Kami, she was such a contradiction.

"Ready...start!" Kakashi vanished with a poof much to Naruto's annoyance.

"DAMN IT!" He yelled.

Quickly pushing the thought to the back of her mind, she registered three more presences lurking just outside the training grounds and smiled wryly.

_Sorry guys, there's not going to be much of a show. _

"Come on Naruto, you dork!" She bit out as she walked in the general direction Kakashi would have gone.

This fight wasn't going to be about her. No, it was going to be about _them_. About the old Team 7.

And she was going to be content with just watching how much they'd all changed.

* * *

"A fight with Sakura and the Copy-ninja? _And_ Naruto? Hell yeah, I'm coming!"

Kiba sped after the two girls as they headed over to the third training grounds, grinning widely.

He couldn't wait to see Sakura in action again.

Hinata had blushed a bright red once she found out Naruto was going to be there and there was no way that Ino wouldn't have come to see Sakura show her team just how much she had progressed without them there.

_Go strut your stuff, Forehead!_

But as they rustled the forest leaves to find a comfortable perch she saw Sakura give them a brief disapproving glance before she looked away with an unreadable expression in her eyes and Ino wondered what exactly the girl was thinking.

Sakura should be damn excited about the fact that she was going to face them all again. After all, it was no secret to the Konoha Rookie-12 just how hard Sakura had trained for this moment. She had approached every single one of them for individual training which they happily gave her and whilst she wasn't yet ANBU they all knew that being jounin was all but a flimsy title for what Sakura was really capable of.

As Ino caught the dazed look in both Hinata and Kiba's eyes she knew they were all thinking of the first High B rank mission they had all embarked on roughly 2 years ago - 2 years ago when Sakura had still been a chuunin.

* * *

_"_Shit_," Shikamaru cursed. _

_Someone had just broken one of the traps he had laid around their makeshift campsite __And they haven't even crossed the border to Iwa yet! So much for a stealth mission._

_Ino, who had been quickly startled out of her slumber, sat up skin prickling and fully alert.__ She turned around to wake up the Hyuuga beside her. "Hinata. Shhh. We've got to move."_

_Akamaru nudged his owner awake and Kiba rolled out of his covers into the damp and chilling forest air.__ "Shhhit..it's freezing out here..."_

_He blinked twice noticing that everyone was already assembled in a defensive stance - everyone except one it seemed. A quick sniff of the air told him that they were going to have six intruders that were going to arrive very very soon._

_"Sakura, Sakura!__ Come on, wake up!"__ Ino spoke in a hushed urgent tone.__ She shook the girl gently at first then as she started to panic her movements became more desperate and violent._

_Kiba stiffened.__ What the hell was wrong with Sakura?__ Why wasn't she waking up? _

_Ino quickly scanned the girl over for injuries. "There's nothing...I don't understand why...she should have woken up by now!" She whispered worriedly. _

_Sakura was sleeping like the dead. If it wasn't for the conspicuous rise and fall of her chest, Ino would have had no doubt that something had gone terribly terribly wrong with the girl. _

**"Troublesome."**

_Shikamaru clenched his fists and brought his hands to his lap in a way that told Ino he was thinking of a plan. _

_"There's no use packing our things. They stepped into one of our traps so they know we're around here. Get Sakura out of her sleeping bag and cast a genjutsu over the site. Make it look like we left in a hurry. We'll ambush them from the trees if they linger too long." _

_As Ino tugged the girl out of her crumpled sleeping bag none-too-gently she wondered if it was possible for a kunoichi to get so tired they couldn't wake up no matter how hard they were jostled. She was about to slide Sakura closer to the foot of a tree and potentially out of harm's way when Shikamaru frowned and gave her a signal. _

_Heart leaping into her throat at the risk of leaving her friend alone to possibly fend for herself, Ino nodded shakily and disappeared up into the trees. They would enter in less than a minute but by that time she would have cast a low-level genjutsu to mask Sakura's presence. She didn't want it to be too obvious so she kept it low chakra. It was designed to conceal not trap so low-level techniques would be much more appropriate. _

_She only prayed that Sakura didn't choose an importune time to wake up and dispel the genjutsu in a panic. It'd wreck all their careful planning. _

_Hidden in the dense foliage, Ino stilled her rapidly beating heart as five figures entered the site. They were dressed in shinobi attire with no hitai-ate on their foreheads. They were either rogue ninjas or iwa-nins disguised for an undercover mission. _

_Ino bit back a curse as her fingers trembled when one of the cloaked figures seemed to glare directly at her before glancing away. Thank Kami._

**...Sakura!**

_She stiffened imperceptibly at first then relaxed as she felt Sakura's chakra taking over her own shaky weaving, continuing and strengthening the thread of genjutsu. Thank Kami, the girl was awake and somewhat aware of the situation._

_She glanced at the pinkette who was clutching her head in slight pain and annoyance, lips moving inaudibly in a barely veiled frustration. Chouji, Kiba and the rest had witnessed her awakening as well. _

_The enemy nins prodded the campsite searching for any clue as to who they were or where they were headed._

_Ino strained her ears to catch their conversation."...obvious...soon at border...probably heading towards Iwa."_

_Then another figure entered the clearing startling Ino into completely concealing her chakra signature. _

**Shit,**_ Ino thought realising her mistake. The same enemy nin who had entered turned back noticing the abrupt cessation of chakra in the air, eyes narrowing suspicion. _

_Chakra was in everything living. It had been natural for slight amounts to be in the air. But chakra in the trees and vegetation were low and constant. Ino's rapid withdrawal of chakra had alerted him to the fact that there were shinobi at work_.

_For one brief second the nin's steely grey eyes landed on her and that was the only opportunity she needed. _

_"Mind transfer jutsu." _

_She felt herself adjusting to the man's body and turned around to look at his comrades. "Let's go. There's nothing here." _

_The others seemed to buy it as they nodded and turned their back on her in order to resume their trek through the forest. She lifted up one of bulky arm to signal to Shikamaru to begin Plan B. He had quickly deduced that she had used one of her mind jutsus and immediately leapt into action without hesitation. _

_Ino could only buy them the chance for a surprise attack. The minute she withdrew from the enemy-nin's body he would regain consciousness and alert them all._

_Chouji caught a glimpse of Ino's body lying somewhat precariously up in the tree, hugging the trunk in a limp embrace as he followed Shikamaru's lead. _

_"Shadow Imitation Jutsu," Shikamaru murmured just as Ino slid out her captive's katana and hit the man in front of her at the back of his neck with the hilt. _

_As he slumped down unconscious, the others turned back eyes widening in realisation that they were under attack. _

_"Jun..."_

_"Attack him! He's an imposter; he just knocked out Jun!" _

_"Cheh. Must be a shadow clone under a henge. Can't believe we fell for that." _

_The same man who had uttered that comment felt a shiver run down his spine as his feet remained firmly glued to the ground despite his attempts to move. Instead, his hand slid down down to the kunai pouch at his hip and tossed it with deadly accuracy into one of his friend's thigh. _

_"SHINTA! What the fuck are you doing?!"_

_"Argggh! It's not me! I'm not trying to -" He charged into his colleague who had just drawn the red-tipped kunai out of his thigh and head-butted him into a tree, effectively incapacitating him. _

_Ino was being pushed back into the edge of the clearing. She winced as a shuriken scratched her left bicep drawing blood; even though it wasn't her own body it still stung. _

_"It's not a clone...!" Her assailant uttered disbelievingly. His eyes chanced upon the bough above them and noticed her slack body hidden among the leaves. "I see." _

_Ino paled and drew out two kunai. _

_"You're not going anywhere," she muttered through gritted teeth. She fought back viciously, __eyes flickering briefly to the left where Sakura was dancing a lethal dance under the cover of her genjutsu. _

_The enemy-nins plummeted to the ground efficiently knocked out by something they couldn't see. It was always a sight to uphold, the pinkette moving swiftly and silently in deadly, subtle attacks. Sakura moved with the natural grace of a shinbobi fighting on pure instinct, her elegance drawing the eyes of the others on their team who had already disabled their opponents._

**Shit**, _Ino thought, realising that she had left an opening for her attacker. Then a cold shock permeated her body as he brushed past her and leapt up onto the tree branches, heading upwards._

**Shit. Shit. Shit!**

_She breathlessly tried to catch up with him, to claw desperately at his feet and drag him back down to the ground. The others had quickly moved into action but they were much much too slow, one more lunge and he'd have her body as hostage...but he wouldn't bother taking a hostage, would he?_

_Then before she knew it a heavy thud hit the ground and relief was coursing over her in waves. Because it was a man's body with a head of unruly black hair that was stretched awkwardly out on the cold forest floor and not her own death staring right at her before her eyes. _

_She felt the thickening silence as they all gazed up to the tree branch where Sakura was still standing, a venemous blue chakra glowing on her hands. _

_"You...killed him..." Shikamaru said strangely. _

_It had been a cold, efficient kill - a mere chakra-infused jab to the vulnerable area just below the adam's apple. He had died before he fell._

"Oh... I guess I did."

_They watched uncomprehendingly as the fury in her eyes died away and she stared blankly at the corpse on the ground. They all knew she had done it to save Ino yet they couldn't help staring in mute wonder. Where had the soft-hearted, innocent Sakura gone? _

_She would call it an accident. But they would call it killing on instinct. _

_They had expected her to break-down and cry at her first kill. A milestone in a shinobi's life that had had to come someday. But they hadn't expected it to be so soon. And they hadn't expected her to look so blank and merely uncertain as she gazed back at them. _

_As if it had only taken a minute for her to rationalise her actions._

* * *

They watched as Sakura's kunai whizzed past Kakashi's face and he disappeared in yet another poof into a log. Substitution jutsu.

She made a show of looking left, right, behind and above before slamming her glowing fists into the ground sending large slabs of earth rising and falling like a solid tsunami.

Kakashi's face looked decidedly paler as he dodged the moving crusts and Naruto standing barely a safe distance away fell back on his behind with a comically aghast look on his face.

It reminded them of her beautiful mad dance on that starless night.

* * *

_The genjutsu had been cast on her assailants, leaving her in the full-view of her teammates as she had rushed in with two kunai grasped in each hand. Her opponents had been surprisingly good at dodging attacks that came from nowhere. They were good. Fully-fledged jounin perhaps. Yet even thought they knew they were caught in an illusion where nothing but the attacks were real they could not release themselves from it. _

**...Kai...Kai..Kai-Kai! **

_They muttered it incessantly like a mantra yet their assailant never came into view. For despite her proficiency in taijutsu and ninjutsu her true element was that of genjutsu and she had long worked out how to deliver it seamlessly. _

_They were trapped in five different kinds of genjutsu that she had woven simultaneously and though they may dispel one they would be caught by another. One could not simply tell when one illusion ended and the other began. _

_So many layers of deception. _

_She excelled in the art of deception._

* * *

They watched unflinchingly as Kakashi called her name unfazingly and emerald eyes glazed over in the tell-tale sign of genjutsu. Within a minute she had dispelled it coldly, a wistful smile on her face making them all curious as to what she had seen.

"You know sensei...we're not going to fall for the same tricks all over again," they heard her say. (_There was no way Sasuke had remained untouched by time or darkness of revenge. She knew that now_.)

"Hm."

Kakashi gazed at her thoughtfully and vanished into the trees after seemingly dropping one of his bells on the ground.

"Oh! Lookie Sakura. He dropped it! How convenient!" Naruto exclaimed cheerfully.

He stepped squarely into a trap which brought him hanging upside down from a nearby tree branch by the ankle. Sakura suppressed an amused smile as his clone poofed off and the real Naruto chased Kakashi back out from hiding. It was nice to see that he had grown up a bit.

"Naruto! That's why I told you not to go there! Now he's going to go off again!" she said exasperatedly, seeing the silver-haired man's lips quirk into a contemplative smile beneath his mask as his neatly avoided Naruto's attack and performed a quick transformation jutsu a split-second after.

"Why's she holding back?" Kiba blurted out thoughtlessly from his perch on the tree. "She didn't go after him!"

Tsunade's head whipped back over to their direction and scowled. "Kiba. Ino. Hinata. Why don't you come watch over here?"

Kiba rubbed the back of his head sheepishly as Ino shot him an irritated glare and Hinata audibly gulped. They slid down out of hiding and timidly made their way over to the Hokage, whispering their greetings to the other legendary sannin and Shizune who shook her head amusedly.

Tsunade rubbed her forehead wearily with a hand, shielding her own confusion at the turn of events. She knew how much this moment meant to her apprentice. Sakura had always been trying to prove her worth ever since Naruto had gone off with Jiraiya and Sasuke had left in his own pursuit of power. So what was she hoping to achieve by holding back?

Perhaps there was nothing left for her to prove - she had rightly found confidence in her own abilities and it had extinguished the need to prove herself to others.

Yet something told Tsunade it wasn't that simple. She sighed. Sakura was getting less and less predictable day by day. Her hot temper hadn't rubbed off on her apprentice too much had it? After all, Shizune seemed to have remained quite gentle and sane.

Unbeknownst to her, similar thoughts were running through Ino's head.

"_Forehead," _she called out softly. _What are you thinking, Forehead?_

The pinkette appeared unsurprised as she lifted up a hand to wave Ino off without glancing behind her. She had always known they were watching her it seemed.

It would be a couple of hours until the test came to the end and whilst their tactics of threatening to spoil the ending of Icha Icha Paradise greatly amused them all, Ino couldn't help feeling a bit disappointed in her.

Was Sakura trying to downplay her improvements? Was she trying to revert to the good-old days or something when Sasuke was still here and she was still weak?

Sakura was hiding something from her, Ino could tell. And by the look of the slightly bemused expression on the Hokage's face, Sakura hadn't told Tsunade anything either.

_Damnit_ _Sakura. I thought I told you you're not alone! _

Ino watched frustratedly as they all laughed - fake-laughing in Sakura's case - at the conclusion of the test. She glared unabashedly at the pinkette causing strange glances from Kakashi and Tsunade. Then Sakura with that superficial smile plastered onto her face excused herself before the others could catch on and walked over to her friend.

Even then her mask did not waver, Ino noticed much to her annoyance.

"Ino. Calm down."

"Forehe-"

"-It's not about me, Ino...It's never been about me."

"...What are you saying, _Sakura_?"

Ino was at a loss. Dimly she was aware that Sakura had lead them a safe distance away from prying eyes and attentive ears.

"Don't you get it, Ino-pig? My happiest days were when we were all here as Team 7 ..._I_ _don't ever want that to change_."

Then Sakura was walking off ahead of her in the direction of her apartment whilst Ino was left standing in place, heart twisting painfully when she registered Sakura's pleading tone.

_Sakura was walking off again just like that day three years ago; _**nothing**_ had changed._

She brought the back of her hand to her eyes to wipe off glistening tears and swallowed uncertainly as she gazed up at the darkening sunset in the sky. Ino was crying in Sakura's stead.

_**Goddamnit Sakura.** **Will it kill you to move on for once?** **Will it kill you to cry for yourself and just get over it? **_

_If you keep holding on to the past then nothing's going to change - why can't you see that? _

**_You'll always be in pain!_**

Ino stiffened as she felt a hand land on her shoulder and turned around smiling wryly in response to Hinata's sympathetic gaze.

"Don't worry. I'm not giving up." _Yet_.

Hinata gave a gentle nod, her own eyes staring off at the distance at the orange figure making its way out from the training grounds. For once she did not blush at the sight of him.

"...Naruto-kun..."

"Huh? Hinata?"

"About Sakura-san..."

A flash of hope appeared in Ino's eyes as she quickly caught on to Hinata's plan. "Naruto, listen. It's about Sakura," she spoke up abruptly.

"I want to talk to you about Sakura."

* * *

_They all watched, captivated by her lithe steps as she spun clear around the wild, desperate swings of her attackers. _

_Her assailants still could not see her and if they could they would have probably frozen in fear. For despite the elegant dance no once could mistake the cold efficiency of her attacks._

_It was a three-minute dance that brought her enemies to their knees. She did not draw out any attack longer than necessary and only in that aspect would they see the mercy of a healer._

_She had only been Chuunin._

.

**That was the Sakura who had held the rank of Chuunin.**

* * *

_**To be continued...**_

**Source(s) of Inspiration**

Vespertine by_ **Cynchick**_**- **for the idea of chakra being infused in everything living.

* * *

_**Author's note:**_

Thank you to Koko-chan 1/16/13 for her piece of constructive criticism as well as 'it's really good' 1/14/13 for her invaluable suggestions.

I believe both of you have essentially said the same thing and I agree with you wholeheartedly. I had a lot of trouble writing that last chapter and in the end as you can see I still wasn't very happy with it. I still intend to incorporate ideas from other fics but I will pay attention to how much it affects the authenticity of my own story. It isn't meant to be a mere imitation, but a build-up on other writers' ideas.

So what that means for you guys is: **Yes! Definitely more spiritual, ghostly Sakura stuff! There will be a LOT of flashbacks in future chapters and I'll start piecing together for you who exactly Sakura has become. **

And I think I'm going to stick with only what I already know about the Naruto anime. So no more relying on Kishimoto, I will be filling up what I don't know with my imagination. **It's safe to say that from this point it no longer follows the original timeline of Naruto.**

It'll be a while until I next upload but I'll try to stick to my personal promise of at **LEAST one chapter per fortnight**. I have finally begun studies again so I'll find out soon whether or not I can cope with the workload. So far though, I have been uploading once every week which is not so bad at all for me.

_I also said I'd be posting a **slight SasuSaku bonus chapter** after the last chapter but like I said, I ended up splitting that chapter into 3. So that means I'll be posting that story in about two chapters once again._

_Sorry if you were looking forward to it._

_impromptumelody95_


	7. Chapter 5 - Day of Return III

**I have now begun to dedicate chapters to the first reviewer of each preceding chapter.**

**This one is dedicated to __****L.M.D.A.A**_**. Thank you for your review.**_

**__****...Enjoy! xD**

**__****.**

**__********Edited A/N: I know I said flashbacks but how did you like my flash-futures? :D There will be plenty more to come!**

* * *

**Chapter 5**

**Day of Return III**

* * *

_Sakura was holding back._

Kakashi tried not to let the frown show through his mask as he slipped Icha Icha into his back pocket and lazily dismissed himself from the conversation with a simple poof.

Hopefully the Hokage wouldn't mind. He _had given her a sign that he was eager to get back to reading his favourite orange book._

Honestly, it didn't rub on his nerves too much that his students had beaten him by threatening to give the ending away; that was hardly a fair fight.

However, what _was_ getting on his nerves was _Sakura_.

He had seen her deliberately pull the punch when she slammed the ground, smile wryly when she knew he was about to escape from Naruto yet not make any move to stop him. It told Kakashi that she had more up her sleeves that she was decidedly holding back from him.

She had startled him with her monstrous strength when she obliterated the training grounds with a single chakra-infused punch and when his Sharingan caught sight of her slight pull a split second later he almost couldn't believe it.

The first thought that had flitted through his head was: What _ridiculous_ strength!

Then it was: Why?

_Why_ would she hold back?

_What_ was going through her head?

_Why_ did he feel as if she was staring at him in resentment?

It rather unnerved him to find that he could no longer predict her movements; read her thoughts and emotions like an open book they had always been in the past.

She was staring at him through a carefully-constructed mask not unlike his own and he found that it frustrated him to no end.

Because, believe it or not, Sakura...had always been his favourite student_._

And as he admitted that to himself a part of him began to feel so excruciatingly guilty for having so little credit over her achievements. He hadn't been a proper sensei to her at all. He had always thought that she did alright on her own; that the other two needed him more - like when he was teaching them the tree-climbing exercise. He had known that she was slightly more mature and slightly more intelligent...definitely more than Naruto and arguably more so than Sasuke.

More than ever he regretted the fact that he hadn't had the time to teach her anything; hadn't had a hand in raising her to be the young woman she was today.

It was admittedly a bit hard to share his attention between all three of them equally, when one of them was a boisterous Jinchuuriki with an endless supply of chakra and the other was a revenge-obsessed, Sharingan-wielding Uchiha. Secretly, however, he had been proud of how much she had achieved even without his help.

Yet, when his genin team had begun to disintegrate he felt himself drifting further and further away from her: away from the loneliness in her large, doleful, emerald eyes; the smile that never quite convinced him. It was because she had... reminded him of _himself_.

It was because he had been a coward -still was a coward.

It was like deja vu. The fresh loss of his genin team was staring at him in the face and he was experiencing the grief of losing both of his teammates as if it had just happened yesterday. It hadn't been anyone's fault but his own.

He had never forgotten how they were snatched away from him, how life was ebbing out of her thin, limp body. Every morning he would be at the memorial, tracing his finger on the painful names etched deeply into the stone. _Missing in action._ Perhaps one day that would be his end also.

He would spend hours there willing the words to change before his eyes - perhaps instead of Uchiha Obito and Nohara Rin a single Hatake Kakashi would appear and be engraved into the stone.

But somehow he would always break free from his dream; he would have walked down to the training grounds absent-mindedly to find his genin team standing in front of him, some lame pre-prepared excuse for being late resting on the tip of his tongue.

When he wasn't on S-ranked missions nothing else could occupy his mind. He would spend the days avoiding Sakura, doing nothing, thinking about the past.

He was thinking about it again. Perhaps he was also to blame for how Team 7 had turned out. If only he had been a better sensei. He couldn't bear to think of Sakura walking down the same path he did, all lost and alone.

Kakashi looked up to see the rosette standing at her doorstep.

_Perhaps there was still time..._

_Perhaps he could make up for it._

"Sakura."

She turned around, muscles tense, a strangely contorted smile on her face.

"Kakashi-sensei..."

"Are you free tomorrow?"

"..."

"I want to teach you..._chidori_."

He heard her sharp intake of breath and gazed intently at her face, noticing how for a split second surprise had flitted across her features.

"...Perhaps," she answered coolly after a brief silence. Then she seemed to mull over it a bit. "I'll see you in the morning."

He noted how she didn't look him in the eye or give him a clear answer.

"Ah. So you shall," he replied softly.

He walked off into the distance uncertain of where he was going and what he was going to do.

Perhaps he should go home and finish Icha Icha like he had planned.

And he would wait - _wait until Sakura forgave him._

* * *

XxXxX

_He had offered to teach her _chidori.

The infuriating man had surprised her by appearing unannounced on her door step and suddenly offering to teach her **_chidori_.**

What the hell was he thinking?!

The first thing that had flitted through her mind was suspicion. _Why was he doing this? _

Then it was anger. _Why was he doing this _**now**?

She found that she could not quite lift her head to meet his eyes.

_Where were you when I _**needed**_ you? _

As quickly as the thought had come she shoved it away. The past was the past. She would be nothing but a hypocrite to demand for his protection when protection was what had rendered her so insufferably weak. Regardless she did not need it anymore; did not need him anymore. She was sixteen - eighteen perhaps in civilian years.

_She could fend for herself._

"...Perhaps," she had bitten out, realising he was still waiting for her reply. _Maybe this time it'll be you who does the waiting,Kakashi-sensei. _"I'll... see you in the morning."

"...Ah. So you shall."

He left her to herself then and for a long minute she stood there dreaming of a hundred thousand ways that conversation could have played out.

Vicious anger. Fake happiness. Cheerful forgiveness. Faint remorse.

With a growl she slammed her fists - sans chakra - against the door. Both hands threaded through her hair and pressed firmly against her scalp.

Kami, that man had some nerves. He had thrown her emotions into turmoil. She could never sleep in this chaos.

She swore that the man hated her. During the three years Naruto had been away not once had he cared to visit. And yet she knew for a fact that he was loitering around the village more often than not, drinking in pubs, reading Icha Icha...when he wasn't avoiding her on S-ranked missions that was.

Sighing belatedly, she stared at the darkening sky and decided upon a little stroll to ease her mind.

After a few minutes she pushed almost absent-mindedly through the bushes on the side of the street - straying from the well-trodden footpath to enter a little clearing - a grass field - clearly not frequented by many.

Yet as she entered she felt a lingering presence in the surroundings. Chakra residue that lead her to a single stone on a grand pedestal nailed to the ground.

A stone memorial.

She traced her fingers along the cursive writing etched deeply into the stone. Her hands lingered on where the chakra presence was strongest and she felt a mute shock course through her as she recognised the signature as Kakashi's.

So he had been here. It wasn't that much of a surprise really. Every shinobi had loved ones that had been snatched away during the war.

What did surprise her was how deeply his chakra was imprinted onto the stone. It was as if he had spent hours and hours every single day running his fingers along the same groove.

"Uchiha Obito," she muttered. "Nohara Rin."

Sakura wondered if she had the courage and loyalty to one day die for Konoha. Maybe once upon time the answer had been an unshakeable yes. But now she wasn't so sure.

"Kakashi-kun...?"

Sakura whipped around to stare into the hopeful brown orbs of a brunette kunoichi. Two blue streaks of tribal paint were marked onto her cheeks, her hair was shoulder-length - hanging loosely in a style that reminded Sakura of her own in the past.

"Oh...it's just you. You're his student, aren't you?"

The woman sighed disappointedly and was about to retreat into the shadows without waiting for a reply when Sakura promptly reached out and grasped her arm.

"WHAT THE-?! You can touch me?! But aren't you still..._alive_?"

Her voice, initially a piercing exclamation, had softened into a small whisper of wonder.

"Nohara-san...isn't it?"

"Y-yes. That's right."

A sudden hope gleamed in emerald eyes. "C-Could you possibly... tell me about Kakashi-sensei?"

Brown orbs widened in surprised delight and understanding; a soft smile graced the elder kunoichi's lips.

"You may call me Rin."

* * *

_Tell him I'm sorry. Tell him he's not to blame._

.

"Kakashi-sensei!"

Sakura pounded on his door, wondering whether she was too late and he had already gone to sleep.

The wood suddenly shifted and he was standing in front of her looking oddly surprised. Sakura stared into the hallway noticing that the lights were still on and that Icha Icha was half-open lying on top of a small cabinet.

The corner of her lips quirked up into a grin making Kakashi blink twice.

"Yes, Sakura?"

"Teach me _chidori_."

Kakashi just stood there for a moment as if he hadn't expected that to come out of her mouth.

"...Now?" He asked, completely at a loss. Sakura sure had gotten hard to predict.

Sakura's grin grew into a fully-fledged smile.

"Yes, sensei."

Looking out the door he could see the sun setting low in the sky; long shadows were being casted over all of Konoha.

"...I guess there's no helping it then."

Although Kakashi would never know it, Sakura would feel a faint stirring in her heart at his words - she would deem this moment as one of the most close-to-happiest moments she had in so long. It would be her second fondest memory of him when he straightened up with a yawn and barely threw a glance at Icha Icha still lying half-open on the kitchen cabinet.

* * *

_Her fondest would be at that moment at the end of a certain long and arduous training session in which she had finally bested him. She had appeared right before his eyes at a speed that he hadn't been able to follow, the tips of her fingers at the edges of his mask in an obvious expression of victory._

Got you now, sensei. You can't run away from me without revealing yourself.

_She would laugh thinking that she had won._

_Then before she could remove her fingers, letting him know that she wouldn't demand of him anything he wasn't already prepared to give, he had angled his face away. The tight material on the tips of her fingers fell and she was gazing dumbly at his face._

_Eyes crinkling and lips curved into a dimpled smile, which she returned with a bright smile of her own. _

_She had finally unmasked Kakashi. _

_No...he had let her._

* * *

He stepped outside the door, both hands slipping inside his pockets and followed her out to the training grounds.

At sunrise Kakashi would be utterly drained; lying at the foot of a tree, eyes closed and posture relaxed. Sakura would let go of the crackling blue lighting lying in the palm of her hand to sit down beside him, face softening into a rare smile.

When Kakashi would awaken he would find her asleep beside him, leaning against the same tree. And just as his eyes flicker open he would feel a whisper of touch and the gentle breath of a familiar kiss at the corner of his masked mouth.

It was a kiss of love, a kiss of forgiveness and so much more.

"_Tell him I'm sorry. Tell him he's not to blame. Tell him that I loved him...and I always will."_

_"Rin-san. Why don't you tell him that yourself, before you go?"_

_"...You're right."_

_She flickered over to his side patiently awaiting signs of his awakening before pressing her lips to his._

_His eyelids fluttered open and he would utter a single word that made her want to both laugh and cry. _

_._

_"__**Rin.**__"_

* * *

XxXxX

"You're telling me that I hurt Sakura by leaving to train with Jiraiya?!"

Blue eyes flashed in anger, concern, guilt and disbelief.

"All I'm saying Naruto is to watch over her."

"Of course! I always have!"

"...I know you have, Naruto. Just make sure of it this time..._don't _ever_ leave Sakura alone_."

.

Ino's words echoed in his head as he shut the door to his solitary apartment and leaned back onto the adjacent wall.

Sakura hadn't changed _that_ much, had she?

Sure her hair was longer, her chest was noticeably bigger...and as a kunoichi she had gotten stronger.

A bitter thought suddenly flitted through his mind, painful and unwanted.

He had seen the way Sai had looked at Sakura. How he had brought his fingers to her face to tilt it up. He wondered what kind of vulnerable expression Sai had seen on Sakura's face; why it had Sai's steel gaze hardening almost imperceptibly.

A baseless anger surged up within him and he realised it was jealousy. Who had Sai replaced really? 'Cos he knew it wasn't Sasuke.

The way Sakura had spoken to him and let him touch her told Naruto that it was a mutual bond of support. The Root shinobi had secured a place in her heart in the position of a close friend.

The only answer his mind could think of was this, and it had his heart contorting painfully: Sai..._had been __**his**__ replacement. _

* * *

**To be continued...**

* * *

**_Please review. _**

**~ Omake (Extra) ~**

_He annoyed her._

_How had she grown to be darker than he? It irked her. _

_A boy with a beast deep within his belly, a boy who had had such a twisted upbringing was more brighter and loving of the world than she, a girl that had grown up with the tender loving care of both civilian parents? _

_He was reaching out for the moon, the stars, the sun. Whereas she was being swallowed up by the darkness of the night._

_He was pure optimism. She was tainted cynicism. _

_It irked her...but she would have him no other way._

_She was a stain that was growing more pigmented with each passing day, rather than a stain that would one-day fade away. _

_She was lonely. _

"Naruto, let's play pretend."

_Let's pretend that nothing has happened; nothing has changed. _

_That we are still people of the past. _

_"...Sakura-chan?"_

_"Pfft. I was only joking, Naruto!"_

_"Well…I knew that!"_

_No, I'm not joking. _

_Come, Naruto, let's play make-believe._

She entertained herself with the thought.

**~ Omake End ~**


	8. Chapter 6 - Cherry Blossom of Konoha I

**_You won't believe what I did a couple of weeks ago! I deleted my very detailed plan for the next two chapters including this one! *sniffs*. I had to rewrite all this from scratch! Which is one of the reasons why it took so long; I couldn't get it to be the way I wanted. Well *sigh* that's technology for you...fortunately for you that concludes the bad news...the good news people, is that I am a very resilient and youthful person. *grins* you can probably guess what that means. _**

**_No, Lee isn't a starring in this chapter (although I admit my mind kept drifting to him whilst I was writing the dialogue.) :P_**

**_Enjoy!_**

* * *

**The Cherry Blossom of Konoha I**

_"Didn't you know? In Konoha cherry blossoms are a rarity."_

* * *

**_Dedicated to Eirame _**

**_...and guest reviewer Sgffjkffyjbdehio 1/30/13_**

* * *

_"...up! Wake up! Wake up _**now**, _KUNOICHI_!"

_Emerald eyes snapped open in a sudden panic, her right hand immediately flew to her head nursing a throbbing ache. Chakra flowed to the tips of her fingers as she recognised the genjutsu surrounding her as Ino's shaky handiwork. It was very fortunate that she had woken in that moment and taken over the genjutsu - a second later there was the crunch of leaves under rough boots just to the side of her head._

_She cursed softly, massaging her temples. Confound it! The only time she succeeded in securing her sleep she had to be out on a mission to an enemy country!_

_"Foolish girl! You don't let down your guards like this out on a mission!" _

_She glared at the silvery forms standing in front of her. They had forcefully barged into her mental barriers and consequently giving her this head-splitting migraine._

_"Che. You would think she would be more grateful to us for having saved her from being viciously murdered in her sleep..."_

_Sakura got to her feet, grimacing as a wave of nausea washed over her. "If it weren't for you people invading my life in the first place I wouldn't have been in such dire need of sleep during my mission," she retorted. _

_"Well I admit that we've been a tad bit intrusive - we all have our reasons for wanting to pass on as quickly as possible - but don't you think blocking us out like that is a very cruel, not to mention extremely stupid thing, to do?"_

_"Yeah, kunoichi. We have our uses. Like just now..."_

_"Hn."_

_They shook their heads exasperatedly at her stubborn non-committal reply but could tell that she was mulling over it, even as she slipped out two kunai and began her invisible attacks. _

_"We'll let you think it over...but this conversation is _not _over, whether you continue to block us out or not."_

_She gave an almost imperceptible nod and tossed her kunai so it tore through cloth and skin and struck the tree trunk with a resounding thwack. So they left and came to find her when night had returned and Sakura was wearily trudging up the flight of stairs to her apartment. _

_Having sensed their presences a few seconds before, her face displayed nothing but a faint annoyance to find them waiting on her doorstep. She didn't bother to invite them in as she unlocked the door and entered her home, knowing that they had no trouble bypassing her wall every night even without her permission. _

_They drifted about comfortably in her home and Sakura turned back to glare at them meaningfully (a stay-out-of-my-room-while-I-get-changed look) before trotting off into her room and pulling the door shut. There was no use locking it after all._

_They hovered outside amusedly, a young male in shinobi attire making loud suggestive remarks that gave to a few deep-throated cackles and to others a more reserved shake of the head. _

_"I heard that, boy. Don't get your hopes up. You'll be the last person I choose to help." _

_Taking her response as a cue that she had finished changing, the glided through the walls into her room to find her sitting cross-legged on her bed with a scroll in her hands._

_The male scowled at her but kept his mouth shut much to her satisfaction; a smug smile broke out on her lips. A few blinked in surprise. She seemed to be in much higher spirits than usual. They wondered what brought along the sudden change. _

_"Okay, listen up. Here's the deal. I'm the only living, breathing person that can hear you, see you, blah blah blah - I get that. I'm not against helping any of you passing on to the next world...in fact I am more than happy to get all of you out of my life."_

_A few snorts came from around the room. _

_"What I am annoyed about is the fact that you are intruding on every second of my life. I need my privacy...and hell I need my sleep."_

_Some of them had the grace to look ashamed or gaze back at her in sympathy. Others simply looked indignant. _

_"Haruno-san. You do not have any idea how it feels like to be stuck between two worlds and be incapable of living in either. Some of us have been around for centuries, it is natural for us to cling to any hope we have of moving on. Clamouring to you is what we must do in order to ensure that we get our turn as soon as possible in order to leave this godforsaken place."_

_Several murmurs and nods of agreement followed the statement. Sakura looked unsurprised. _

_"I understand that you all want your turn but you must admit that if you are all crowding around me pouring out your life's story at the same time, nothing will be done. It is not practical. Neither is intruding on my sleep in the hopes of getting to talk to me alone. _

_"I know you have been around for eons and that you're eager to leave but look at it this way, what's waiting one more day going to do when you have been waiting for so long already? No, don't look at me like that. I'm not done," she said, glaring at the discontented faces around the room. _

_ She abruptly tossed the scroll onto her table and leaned back with a contented sigh onto her pillow. _

_"Well, what are you waiting for? Write down your names on the list. First come first serve."_

_Instantly they were all beside her table fighting over the only ink and brush tablet. There were a few curses here and there as the brush was snatched out of carelessly loose grasps or passed along to the other side out of their reach._

_She waited until they all settled down before continuing. _

_"This is how I'll conduct our...sessions from now on. You want to talk to me you write your name down like the civil human beings you are, uh I mean, once were. I respond by writing a time, date and place next to your name. Don't ask me why I haven't gotten to you yet if you're not at the top of the list and don't try to cross each other's names out and rewrite your name in their stead. I will know and you can pretty much guarantee that you'll be going to the bottom of the list."_

_A few bristled at the 'civil human beings' comment but most were satisfied with how she chose to conduct their future appointments. _

_"There should be no reason for you to complain. You will all get your turn and I get my sleep. You respect my privacy, I respect you and there will be no need for me to put up these mental barriers that annoy you so much._

_"That means you can interrupt my sleep if and only if it's an emergency. And Kami, let it be an _emergency."

_She began fluffing up her pillow, very much looking forward to continuing her sleep uninterrupted by over-excited, translucent beings. They took it as a signal to leave and "respect her privacy" as she had so eloquently put it. _

_But just before they could slip through the walls, cracks and windows Sakura called them back. _

_"By the way, my counseling is _not_ for free."_

_They stiffened immediately and spun around with blank gazes or accusing stares. She simply laughed. _

_"There has to be something in it for me too, you know? My privacy is something I deserve regardless of whether I agreed to help you or not."_

_"What do you want?" an old wiry man asked bluntly. "We do not have money, kunoichi. Or did it no occur to you that the dead own nothing?" _

_Saskura smiled. "That is not true. You most definitely do not have nothing to give me. You have your memories. You have a life of experience. I will be flexible. You offer your payment, whether it be knowledge, service or whatnot. If I can make use of it then I will accept it."_

_Heated conversation commenced around the room and Sakura's eyes sparkled as certain words snagged her interest - bad or good._

_"I couldn't possibly betray a village secret!"_

_"But I'm a civilian! What do I have to offer? A lesson in cooking? Motherhood? You think she has the birds and bees talk yet?"_

_"Jutsu. There's no way she would think that my jutsu is insufficient payment! What shinobi would let slide the opportunity to master some rare jutsus? Not to mention some clan techniques.."_

_"Well, I suppose I could try haunting someone she really really hated...who doesn't enjoy a little revenge, now and then?"_

_"Damn you! I don't know any of this village's secrets - and I don't have anything to bargain with! Well, it can't be too late or hard to snoop around now could it? It's not like anyone can see me or punish me for spying now! I'm already dead!" _

_Sakura guffawed and the conversation thinned out as heads turned and eyebrows rose, questioning her sanity. _

_She laughed a bit more until tears came into her eyes then slapped the bed so hard it shook. She cursed once she heard a small crack come from beneath her and upon failing to find any visible sign of destruction she breathed out a sigh of relief and pulled her covers up to her chin. _

_"Okay, all of you out. You can discuss this elsewhere. I doubt that you will refuse my conditions and I want my sleep _now_." _

_Shaking their heads at her sudden mood-swing they left through the wall to wherever it was they stayed when they weren't following her around. Regardless of whether or not they accepted her deal or not she was going to have to find some way to separate her sixth sense from her other senses. There had to be a way of blocking them out without endangering herself on missions._

_Sakura let out a deep breath and promptly fell asleep. At least the future was looking bright._

* * *

"Good morning, Hag."

Sakura smiled. "Morning, Sai."

It wasn't unusual for Sai to turn up on her doorstep unannounced and accompany her to the hospital for her morning shift. He had more than one reason for doing so: one was to make sure that she had a proper breakfast, seeing as she was such a workaholic and that emergencies during the day meant that she had to do without lunch and sometimes dinner; two was that it discouraged any unwelcome stalkers she had, kami knows how many there were not counting the non-living ones of course; and three he simply enjoyed her company.

"You look happy today," Sai remarked. Sakura smiled but did not care to explain.

"Why?"

She sighed despite herself. "I don't know. I guess I sort of reconciled things with Kakashi-sensei."

Sai looked thoughtful.

"Good," he said smiling.

* * *

_"Sai, what are you doing here?"_

_One slender hand rested on the gate to keep it from opening, the other agitatedly raked rose-hued hair out of the way. Emerald eyes looked up uncertainly and perhaps were mildly annoyed._

_"I'm here to fight with you, Ugly, and Dickless Wonder," he replied without missing a beat. _

_Funny how he hadn't forgotten Naruto's nickname after three years of non-use._

_"Sai..." She began exasperatedly, but she hadn't needed to continue. Her outstretched palm was body language enough, but he wasn't the type to just turn and walk away from the training grounds without asking any questions._

_His eyes simply flashed a hurt charcoal._

_"Why not, Sakura? The Hokage asked _Team 7_ to report here."_

_An involuntary gasp left her mouth; he was angry, she realised. She ducked her head and chewed on her bottom lip anxiously. He never called her by name unless he was angry with her._

_Sai sighed, running a hand through closely-cropped pitch-black hair. "You don't want me here," he stated._

_He wanted to lean forward and tug her lips from the merciless treatment they were always being subjected to whenever she was nervous or anxious. It was a bad habit._

_But if felt too intimate. Instead he reached forward and tipped her face upwards, only to gaze into the cold emerald gaze of the poker-face he had come to know so well – he had taught it to her after all._

_"This is important. Isn't it, Sakura?" He asked finally. _

_Her indifferent mask never lifted but she was holding her breath and Sai knew it. _

_Sometimes she wondered how a boy how claimed he had no emotions could understand her so well. He had changed so much since they had first met and markedly so since that mission in Suna. She had always thought that that mission they had been a milestone in the development of his emotional capabilities._

_Surprisingly, he let go of her and asked no further questions._

_"Gomen ne. Sai." She smiled sheepishly in order to shrug off her guilt but Sai wasn't deceived. Sakura was downplaying what this alone time really meant to her._

_He waved a hand in acquiescence, letting her know he understood. "Go…do what you must..but don't forget that I'm a part of Team Seven now too."_

_He had surprised her again._

_She had already known his sentiments of course but she had just never expected Sai to say it aloud._

_"…Yeah, I know."_

* * *

"Good."

"..."

"By the way Hag, Team 7 is getting a mission tomorrow."

Her eyebrows rose in slight surprise. "Really?"

She stared strangely at the contented smile on his lips.

He didn't respond having gotten used to Sakura's excess of listening cues and rhetorical questions. It seemed that she was still underestimating him. It wasn't much of a surprise. He _had_ progressed emotionally far more than he let on after all, but he wasn't sure if he wanted her to continue underestimating his...emotions.

They had reached the back entrance of the hospital and it was time to part ways. His hands itched to hold the slim white wrist by his side and give it a gentle squeeze. For some reason, he kept on wanting to touch Sakura...as if a little physical contact reassured some strangely agitated part of him.

When they walked side by side in the mornings their hands and shoulders would sometimes brush past one another, and the silky touch would send some incomprehensible warmth fluttering in his chest. He wondered what it was.

Some part of him wanted to tell her and have her cure his ailment. But the other part of him was hesitant to speak up and he found it strange. He never had a conscience before; had never hesitated to bluntly say things. But what he did have was instinct. A tiny niggling as to when it was a bad idea to do something.

So instead he smiled at her softly, watching warmly as she smiled in return, thanked him for walking her there and waved before she left.

He spun around a moment later, only mildly surprised to catch sight of a peeved blonde shinobi staring a him in a rather unfriendly way.

"Good morning, Dickless. I didn't know it was possible for you to be stealthy."

"I TOLD YOU NOT TO CALL ME THAT!"

"Oh? I don't recall. It must have been a long time ago."

"...SO?! HOW COME YOU DIDN'T FORGET TO CALL ME "DICKLESS" THEN?"

"Dickless. You're making sense."

"Of course I am...WHAT? YOU SAYING THAT I DON'T MAKE SENSE NORMALLY?!"

"Your subtlety reading skills have improved too. Looks like training in the mountains really worked after all."

"..."

Sai smirked. "It seems that it is true."

"What is?"

"That you can stop a fight by complimenting the other person."

"WHAT?! OI, COME BACK HERE, YOU BASTARD! I'M NOT DONE WITH YOU! WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU DOING WITH _MY_ SAKURA-CHAN?!"

* * *

_A mission for Team 7, huh?_

Sakura slipped on her white coat and hunted around the room for a clipboard and a pen.

"Haruno-san!" A nurse appeared at the door, gasping for breath.

"Yes?"

"We need you in the psychological ward again. Koizumi-san is refusing to see anyone but you and...!" There was no need for her to continue. There were very good reasons as to why certain people belonged in the psychological ward.

"Got it. Tell Shizune-senpai to cover for me in Unit 3. It's just a light knee operation."

She put down her clipboard and hurried down the hallway, shaking away her mixed feelings about the mission.

They would have to face things about her she didn't necessarily want them to know. Kami knows how hard it was to keep to their image of her in the past. Maybe it wouldn't hurt to let go like she had done with Kakashi. She hadn't dredged up the unfortunate past and poured out her life's secrets but at the very least she had openly and honestly interacted with him. Yes, that should be fine.

It was only a matter of time that they'd find out she was ANBU after all. She was getting tired of deceit.

Yet somewhere deep inside her heart was aching. It had always been deceit and denial. She had changed and not even Naruto could bring back the happiness and innocence she had had in the past. Naruto had been her only sliver of hope - but if she had to be honest any hope of Sasuke returning and the old Team 7 being complete had died three years ago. Now it was not hope but denial.

She was beginning to despise the facades that she put on, the optimism deeply ingrained within her that was responsible for so much suffering and grief. Not for the first time she contemplates letting go in a much darker sense.

_Let go, Sakura. This tainted darkness, pure anger, insanity and destruction is a part of you._

She pushed the thought back into the recesses of her mind and concentrated on the task at hand. Slipping into the bone-white clinical room, she smiled gently at the patient trembling on his feet, a bloodied syringe gripped tightly in his hand. The nurses in the room looked exceedingly relieved that she had arrived. As usual, they slipped outside the room to give her the privacy to conduct her treatment.

"Koizumi-san, it's me. Sakura."

His nostrils flared as he inhaled sharply and his pupils slowly contracted to a more normal size. He recognised her and was calming down.

"S-Sakura-san."

He looked at the syringe in his hand ashamedly and sat down defeatedly on the bed. "S-Sorry. I got p-paranoid when I saw the needle..." he muttered. "I thought they were going to kill me the same way they killed _him_."

"Ah."

"But they won't kill me right? 'Cos you are here..."

His grip on the syringe slackened and she gently approached him to discard it into the waste bin.

"That's right, Koizumi-san. Just relax. You don't have to worry about anything..."

He nodded shakily and reclined on the bed.

"Sakura-san. Tell me what you said last time again...sometimes I-I forget..."

He rubbed his hands anxiously against each other, the dry wrinkled skin making papery sounds that seemed to soothe him down.

"Of course, Koizumi-san. Just wait a moment."

She turned her back on him to reach up in the cupboard and prepare a new syringe of the nerves medication. She diluted it a bit more, wanting to wean him off the relaxant. She believed that with efficient mental counselling he would be able to get a hold on his life again, just like most patients in the psychological department.

Leaving the needle lying harmlessly on the bench, she sat on the seat placed on the side of his bed and gathered his chapped, wizened hands in hers. Gently massaging his fingers and certain calming pressure points in his palms, her emerald eyes lit up in a as she recounted the tale Koizumi's old teammate himself had told her just a few weeks ago, her gentle excitement soothed him almost instantly.

"...He was a hero in every sense of the word. To him it was a glorious death, to die protecting his beliefs, his comrades and his village...he did not think of it as torture. He did not blame or curse the world when he left. He was at peace...isn't that right?"

A few tears leaked out of his eyes yet he did not bother to pull away from her soothing grasp to wipe them off. Around Sakura, he had no need for flimsy pride or raised hackles. She understood him - knew he wasn't really insane; understood his grief.

Instead he exhaled slowly and stretched out his palm, chakra-restraint bracelets chinking against one another, indicating to her that he was ready for the medication.

She smiled softly. "Thank you."

"No...thank _you_, Sakura-san."

* * *

She shut the glass door, having told Tsunade that an opaque door would make her patients feel too confined and in some cases stir up unwanted emotions and memories. The glass however had had to have been enforced with chakra so that it could not shatter with any mediocre force and if broken into with chakra - alarms would be raised in the hospital.

Although she was officially a surgeon and doctor and not a psychologist she was often called into the psychological ward for matters like these simply because she was efficient.

As she turned the corner and made her way to the office to retrieve her long list of appointments, she was dimly aware of the awe-struck faces of nurses, medics and doctors alike who enjoyed gossiping about her psychological dealings just as much as her medical successes.

She always chose to ignore them anyway, but it made her slightly uncomfortable to keep on hearing about her "prowess as a mind-reader" or the fact that she was "blessed with a sixth sense." The latter hit a bit too close to home. It was strange being idolised in such a way and she refused to admit that she deserved any credit for these sessions.

"SAKURA-CHAN!"

Her eyes widened. "Naruto?"

He beamed up at her.

"What the hell are you thinking yelling like that in a hospital? _Baka!_" She scolded as she pinched his ear and dragged him to her office.

"Ow-ow-OW! It hurts! Sakura-chan!" He squeaked. She released him to pick up her clipboard and scan its contents only to find that a line had been drawn through the rest of her appointments. Instead there was a small scribble next to each indicating that it was now someone else's responsibility. What the - ?

"I can't believe you're a fully-fledged doctor now, Sakura-chan! I'm so proud of you!"

"What are you doing here, Naruto?" She questioned, ignoring his earlier comment.

"Eh-? Well, uh...Shizune told me that you were free for the afternoon and I thought you might wanna come have some raamen with me...I mean, we haven't had lunch together in ages!"

A smile broke out on her lips despite her annoyance that Shizune had taken things into her own hands. Raamen. Somethings never changed, did they? At least, with Naruto they never did.

Naruto grinned at her, clearly taking her smile as an agreement for he promptly took her arm and all but teleported outside the hospital in his excitement. Sakura winced as astounded nurses, doctors and patients hastily spun and jerked to get out of their way as Naruto barged out the main entrance.

"I heard that you're too much of a workaholic, Sakura-chan," Naruto commented cheerfully. "And that was why Sai had to walk you to the hospital in the mornings - to make sure you had a proper breakfast."

Sakura rose an eyebrow at the abrupt mention of Sai.

"So this is Sai's doing?"

"What?! NO! It's all me, me and my good intentions!" He boasted proudly.

Sakura snickered.

"What?! Don't you believe me, Sakura-chan?!"

"No it's -"

"-NO?!"

"-Calm down, Naruto! I was going to say 'No it's not that I don't believe you!'"

"...Oh."

He scratched the back of his sheepishly.

"Then why did you laugh?"

She sighed. "It just reminded me of the good old times, that's all..."

"Oh."

They had fallen into a comfortable silence as they walked along the street. It suddenly struck Sakura that Naruto wasn't capable of such silence. She whipped her head around to find him staring confusedly at the horde of boys behind them.

A horde of boys...

Shit.

She should have known better than to exit from the main entrance.

"Sakura-chan, why are there so many guys over there? Is there some kind of event on? It can't be! It's not New Year's and it's not Christmas...oh, is it White D-mwahf!?"

Sakura clamped a hand over his mouth, glaring at him menacingly. "Don't you dare say another word."

He gulped and stayed silent so she let go and instantly regretted it as he blurted out another incredibly insightful remark. "Sakura-chan, I think they want to talk to you!"

She growled at his obliviousness and spun on her heels irately to glare at the bright, hopeful faces looking her way.

"Well?!" She demanded, wishing they'd get it over and done with.

Meanwhile, Naruto was putting two and two together and coming up correctly - kami bless him - with four. His eyes widened in surprise.

"Oh."

Poor little Sakura-chan had accumulated a fan-club over the years he was away...those bastards! How dare they approach her when she was unguarded and still hurting over _Teme - w_ait...! Was she still...?

He stared at her intensely but she showed no signs of grievance. His gaze followed a pale, slender hand as it combed through rose-hued hair irritatedly, the other perched on curvy hips in the perfect picture of exasperation.

It looked kinda seductive though, Naruto thought. He flinched and immediately cleared his head of any unwholesome thoughts towards his pink-haired teammate - kami it would be like incest!

Despite every inch of her - glare, posture and all - indicating them to back off, her fan club must have picked up the seductive vibes too for a young chuunin bravely stepped forward to grace her question with an answer...on behalf of the crowd of course.

"Sakura-san, since you have so graciously told us not to waste our money on chocolate and gifts it has been decided that we will present you instead with gifts of our intellect instead."

"Huh?" Naruto said bemused. Why were they talking like that?

Sakura looked as dumbfounded as he was. Kami, if this was what she thought it meant she wished she had just accepted their offer of chocolates!

The chuunin cleared his throat and begun reciting his curly pick-up line with a heated flush in his cheeks.

"Sakura-san, you are the very epitome of everlasting beauty and youth and a rarity bestowed on the people of Konoha. You are beautiful, kind, intelligent and a kunoichi like no other."

For a second Sakura was gaping, Naruto himself was rendered speechless, then a blank look adorned her features.

The male in question simply frowned, a bit disappointed that he hadn't evoked any response from his idol of worship then he was swallowed up by the crowd as it surged forward to present her with a multitude of sickly sweet compliments. If anyone had cared to pay attention they would have noticed that her eyebrow was ticking dangerously.

"That's it! Stop!" She stomped on the ground, thankfully without chakra, leaving a 30 cm crack in the middle of the street.

"Oh heavenly sweet goddess of mercy, the gentle healer of all things living...you bend trees and move mountains into submission with a simple movement of grace..."

Kami, save her! It was simply too much!

She grabbed Naruto's arm and hastily walked off towards Ichiraku's before she lost her appetite.

The crowd squealed their disappointment but before she could leave someone hurriedly cleared their throat in order to address her.

"Wait!"

She winced and hurried on but clearly this did not discourage them.

"The volatility of the expressions flitting across your countenance never fails to remind me that you are one heck of a fine piece of art!"

Wolf-whistles came from the crowd and Naruto immediately bristled in anger at the suggestive undertone. Hell, it wasn't just suggestive if _he_ could figure it out!

Had Sakura's life been invaded with lecherous stalkers with no-one but a clearly incompetent Sai - who was probably a stalker himself - to protect her?

Naruto was about to retaliate but he noticed Sakura had stepped forward so that she was at an intimidating hairs-breadth from the brown-haired, freckle-faced youth.

Serves him right, Naruto thought. He was awfully pleased that someone else other than him was being going to be subjected to Sakura's horrendous monster strength.

"Is that so?"

Naruto's grin wavered. Huh? Why wasn't she punching him already?

"I was told that fine art is eternal..._something wonderful that's left long into the future._"

Sakura smirked challengingly and the chuunin promptly fainted at her feet either at the alluring quirk of her lips or the weight of angry, jealous stares pinning him down.

As quickly as it happened the crowd erupted in a sea of praise.

"Why of course, Sakura-san, you are correct!"

"How stupid of him not to see that your beauty is _everlasting_!"

Naruto cringed. They were sounding more like zealous fangirls - kami, did that man over there just giggle?!

Giddy laughter turned nervous as Sakura turned around with an all-too-familiar glint in her eyes.

"Thank you guys... but you will not be keeping me and my friend here any longer, will you?" She asked in a saccharine voice.

Naruto was in awe. In the span of 5 seconds all giddy fanboys of the Worship Sakura Fanclub had registered the veiled threat in her words and vanished from their sight. Not one person was misled by the fact that she had phrased the threat as a question. It was obvious that they weren't being given a choice.

"Now Naruto, shall we get going?"

Naruto gulped. "Y-Yup."

* * *

**__****_Bonus slight SasuSaku Chapter is out! It is called "True or False?". Go to my profile to check it out! Read while waiting for more GW updates :)_**

**_A/N: _**

**_It was getting way over my usual word limit so I decided to cut it there. _**

**_I hope the humour didn't disrupt the flow of the story. Like I said, this wasn't exactly how I planned it. *cries*_**

**_Review anyway?_**

**_Guest 16/02/2013. The veiled threat is not in the everlasting beauty but Sakura's 'polite' question._**


	9. Chapter 7 - Cherry Blossom of Konoha II

_**Finally an update, hey? I cannot begin to tell you how busy my studies have kept me. I guess I was too idealistic in proposing to update very 2 weeks...So I'm sorry but I'll have to break a promise. Ghost Whisperer will still be continuing :P but I have now officially told ya that it will be VERY IRREGULARLY UPDATED.**_

_***Follow* to get notified of when I update, or else leave it to chance and fated readings, ne? :D**_

* * *

**The Cherry Blossom of Konoha II**

"Art is eternal..._something wonderful that's left long into the future_."  
- Unknown

* * *

_**Dedicated to Dina Sana.**_

* * *

Sakura lifted the flap of fabric hanging at the shop's entrance and sauntered in after the eager blonde salivating in his seat at the incredible aroma in the air.

"RAAMEN! Finally!"

Teuchi chuckled fondly as he handed two delicious extra-size bowls of the day's special over the counter.

"This one's on me. Welcome back, Naruto."

Naruto grinned and all but tore his chopsticks apart in his elation.

"Thanks, Ojichan."

Ayame hid a cheerful smile behind her hand as she watched Naruto wolf down his noodles while Sakura rolled her eyes and in a much more dignified manner brought her chopsticks to her mouth. There was no mistaking the warm smile on her lips though.

Unsurprisingly, Naruto soon finished his bowl - drained it to the last drop - and ordered another, of course. Now that there were two extra-large bowls of raamen sitting in his stomach, Naruto reclined in his seat contentedly waiting for Sakura to finish her meal. He noticed that the shop was surprisingly crowded; it must have gotten more popular among the villagers while he was away.

"Ne, Sakura-chan...who told you that thing about art?" He asked curiously. "I didn't know you were interested in art..."

Sakura smiled softly. "Hm...yeah, I'm not really that type of person hey?"

"Well, you weren't but you might be interested in it now, right?" Naruto said thoughtfully.

.

_People change._

_._

Sakura burst out laughing.

"WHAT? What did I say?!"

"Hahaha. Nothing. I mean, you were _thinking_, Naruto."

"_Sakura-chan_! That's mean! You're spending too much time with the bastard, Sai!" He complained loudly.

Secretly however he enjoyed eliciting laughter from her, liked the way it sounded full-throated and warm. He had missed her. Missed talking to Sakura like this.

Suddenly her hand was in inches away from his face, dabbing at his nose with a folded piece of tissue. She grinned. "You're so childish Naruto. Who gets soup on their nose without realising it?"

He smiled sheepishly, not noticing that his question had effectively gone unanswered.

"Ah, Sakura-san! How have you been?"

A plump lady with rosy cheeks and bright brown eyes appeared behind them smiling warmly at Sakura, a bag of take-away raamen in her large hands.

"Yoshioka-san," the pinkette returned with a smile. "I've been alright. More importantly, how have you and your little boy been?"

The woman beamed. "Great! He's recovering speedily - it's all thanks to you, dear. Listen, why don't you come over to dine with us this evening? I know you're busy but if you drop by you'll find that we're serving your favourites - fried ginza and anko dumplings! I know you will be interested in this recipe!"

Sakura's eyes lit up. "Now Yoshioka-san, when did you get so good at bargaining?"

Yoshioka laughed. Then with a sincere expression on her face she reached out to lay a hand on the pinkette's shoulder. "Do drop by sometime, dear. Everyone will be happy to see you...I don't think I've seen my family so...complete since the day my Yuuko passed on."

Sakura gave the hand on her shoulder a gentle squeeze but otherwise remained silent as Yoshioka wiped a few tears from the corner of her eyes. "You fill the void, you know dear? You bring back my happy memories of her...Kami, I am being so emotional but I am really grateful to you, Sakura-san."

After a few sniffles and an awkward embrace, Yoshioka-san excused herself and left the shop with a bright smile on her face, having had Sakura promise to visit her sometime in the evening.

Sakura sighed amusedly at the woman's antics and turned around to find Naruto staring at her in awe.

"Wow. You're like...a hero, Sakura-chan."

She blushed and cleared her throat. "_Baka_. Could you be more oblivious?"

"Eh?"

"You're the one going to be Hokage someday."

_You're the one who has a way with words and hearts._

Naruto's eyes were glazed over in happiness. "That's right. Believe it!"

Someone cleared their throat. "_Well_, that was very emotional."

"KAKASHI-SENSEI! WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!"

"Sensei." Sakura said with a knowing smile.

"Yo," he replied, crinkling his eyes fondly at the contrinthe I their greetings. "I just finished my meal."

"NO WAY! That means I just missed seeing your face! Damn it!"

The silver-haired man raised an eyebrow. "You're still on about that?"

"JUST WAIT KAKASHI-SENSEI! I'll unmask you, dattebayo!"

* * *

The sun was setting in the sky, casting a golden-pink glow over the market street. Sakura walked comfortably flanked by Naruto and Kakashi who each held as many bags of groceries as the could. Sakura herself carried a bag of milk bottles, potatoes and cabbages. She could have carried more given her excessive strength but now that the boys were back - well Kakashi couldn't exactly be termed a boy, could he? - they were back to their protective ways walking her back to her apartment.

Kakashi had been astonished at how well-received Sakura was among the villagers who had all but shouted greetings and shoved bags of free supplies to her in appreciation of something or other she'd done for them. There were even a few she didn't particularly seem acquainted with either who merely enjoyed her conversation every now and then.

As they trudged up the staircase to her apartment and carefully laid the bags on the kitchen table, Sakura turned around to pour them each a cup of tea.

Naruto sat down on the sofa, strangely quiet as he reflected over the evening. Kakashi was helping her pack her groceries into the fridge and shelves, shooting discreet and thoughtful glances at her when he thought she wasn't looking.

He frowned. Sakura seemed to have wormed her way through the lives of so many. While it was most definitely not a bad thing he couldn't help thinking it was rather strange. Even in Konoha a minor group of civilians held a healthy fear of shinobi and admittedly even as a well-known medic for her to establish such a close connection with so many villagers was a near impossible feat in itself.

_What have you been up to, Sakura?_

* * *

_"WHOA- ooops! Sorry...Sakura-neechan?!"_

_Sakura chuckled and shifted her bag of groceries to her other hip - fortunately she hadn't dropped it in the collision - then leaned down with her free hand to ruffle the boy's hair fondly._

_"Be careful where you're going, Kenji-kun."_

_Kakashi looked on amusedly at the motherly scene, wondering how Sakura could manage to be so frightening at times yet so gentle at others. At the corner of his eye he saw two other kids hiding behind the fence, the girl wide-eyed with a mixture of fear and curiosity while the boy scrunched his face up in suspicion at the shinobi who had interrupted their game of ninja chase. Civilian kids, he noted._

_Naruto was transfixed on the genuine expression of idolisation on Kenji's face even as Sakura crouched down to chide him. Sakura was so ...loved. He slowly bared his teeth into a grin. While his childhood hadn't been at all that great, he had gradually made his own circle of loved ones. The full impact of being home among them suddenly hit him and he turned away to hide his sniffling._

_The boy removed the loose cloth around his eyes that must have served as a makeshift hitai-ate (forehead protector) during the game._

_"Ne, Sakura-neechan. I want to be a ninja just like you!"_

_Sakura froze and pulled her hand back stiffly much to Kakashi's surprise. Kenji however was much too happy to care._

_"Then I'll be able to protect my parents in place of Reiji-niisan!"_

_So his brother had passed away, Kakashi realised. He caught the odd expression in Sakura's eyes and felt slightly unsettled. That world-weary resignation...he hadn't expected her to react like that - that__ was more of... his thing._

_Sakura laid down her baggage with a soft sigh._

_"Have you ever thought about what it means to be a ninja?"_

_Kakashi flinched. Kenji beamed and replied exuberantly. "Of course, Sakura-neechan! It means I'll be strong, have super-duper fighting powers and -"_

_Sakura laid a hand on his shoulder. "What about leaving your mum and dad behind when you go on missions that take months to complete..." She hesitated before plunging on. "...missions that you might not ever come back from."_

_His friends gasped. Kenji's smile wavered. "B-But I thought..."_

_At the solemn expression in her eyes, he caught on to the gravity of her words; horror appeared on his face._

_"It's not all fun and games, Kenji-kun...Who will protect your parents when you are away?"_

Will they even be alive when - _if_ - you return?

_Kenji was shocked. Naruto shifted around uneasily. "Then...why are you a ninja, Sakura-neechan?"_

_"Hmm. I'm not just a ninja. I'm a doctor," she said smiling softly._

Doctor. Not medic-nin_._

_Kakashi wanted to applaud her choice of words. Or maybe how she had effortlessly maneuvered around the fact that she was also shinobi. What were the connotations? Delete one word and you have powerful implications._

I'm not a ninja. I'm a _doctor_.  
I don't _kill_ people. I _save_ lives.

_Had Sakura done it on purpose? __Dimly Kakashi wondered whether or not she had had her first kill yet. _

_Kenji on the other hand recovered swiftly like all kids did. He caught on swiftly. "Then I'll be a doctor just like you!"_

_Sakura grinned. "No..."_

_"Huh? But-!"_

_"- I challenge you to be a _better_ doctor than I am."_

_Pleasant surprise coloured the boy's face. "Y-you really think I can?"_

_Sakura laughed and Kakashi could feel the relief in her voice - relief for what exactly? Kakashi felt desperate to know. _

_"Try hard, Kenji-kun. Really hard."_

* * *

The bag of potatoes landed with a thump on the ground as Kakashi seized her bare arm. She had rolled up her sleeves in preparation to cook unaware that a tiny treacherous, dark mark on the edge of her sleeve had caught his attention.  
Because he'd recognise it anywhere even if it was just the tail end of the swirl.

ANBU.

Sakura was ANBU.

"_Sakura_."

He felt the anger seep into his voice making it low and strained. "Why didn't you tell me? Why didn't _anyone_ tell me?"

He cursed the fact that Tsunade had had him re-enact the bell test without telling him that Sakura was now in fact ANBU. Or the fact that he hadn't known even though he had always pretty much been around.

So Kakashi hadn't been wrong, not that he ever doubted it. Sakura holding back had been an understatement.

It took him a few seconds before he realised his grip on her arm was so tight bruises would form yet Sakura had said nothing, done nothing.

He let go unsurprised to see that the ANBU mark had disappeared, she had covered it up again with chakra. It was no good to walk around the village with it exposed to everyone's sight.

Wait...'again'?

He stared into guiltless, unsurprised veridian eyes realising that their owner hadn't been so oblivious after all.

She smiled even though it didn't quite reach her eyes. "I've showed you now haven't I, Kakashi-sensei?"

"Hm."

_You could have just _told_ me._

(_Would you have believed me?)_

He didn't like it. Didn't like how she was following in his footsteps. Didn't like how he was still underestimating her and how she had predicted his move at every turn.

How had she known he would react like this?

Why did it seem that she knew more about him than he knew about her?

"I haven't told Naruto yet."

"I see. He'll...find out on his own."

"Yeah."

He picked up the potatoes, mildly embarrassed at his reaction. Sakura would think that that he never thought it possible she would make ANBU. It wasn't so far off the mark actually, he realised a little guiltily.

Shoveling the potatoes back into their bag, he straightened and caught sight of the wooden figurines posing on the highest shelf.

"That's interesting. Did you get them in Suna?" He gestured to one of the bigger ones, sculptured with tiny joints here and there bent backwards into a graceful arc.

"Hmm, I wonder about that..."

Kakashi's one visible eye dilated. "You _made_ this?"

Sakura grinned then turned back to the stove as the oil sizzled.

"Teachers tend to leave a bit of an imprint on you, don't you think?"

Kakashi fell silent wondering why she suddenly said that. It was as if she had returned the conversation back to his earlier thoughts when he suspected her of following his footsteps.

The possibility that the conversation was moving onwards and not backwards never occurred to him.

* * *

_**To be continued...**_

_**Review? **_


	10. Chapter 8 - Cherry Blossom of Konoha III

_**Enjoy! :D**_

_**Nice to see some of you predicting the story plot ;). I have to say you're **_**very**_** close.**_

_**This is once again dedicated to Dina Sana, the first reviewer of my last chapter. ( ^ω^ )**_

* * *

**The Cherry Blossom of Konoha III**

_"I hate not knowing."_

- Hatake Kakashi

* * *

"Naruto, there's something that you should know."

"What's with that cryptic line, obaachan! Just tell me already! It better be an awesome A-rank mission! I know I'm still genin but -"

"NARUTO!"

"Hai, hai. Just continue already."

Tsunade rolled her eyes in exasperation and took a thoughtful sip of coffee; Naruto pouted.

"_Obaachan!"_

Tsunade let out a small smile. "There have been news of a group of missing-nin from various villages banding together with a very ambitious goal."

Naruto grinned. "So it's Team 7's mission to bring them down! That's awesome, obaachan!"

"Shut up and listen, Naruto!" Tsunade shrieked, slamming her hands down on the desk as she stood up.

"This is a _very_ important mission and it concerns the welfare of _all_ the hidden villages in the world. Most of all it concerns _you."_

Naruto's triumphant grin vanished.

_There were only two ways for it to concern him. One was that it affected him becoming Hokage and the other was..._

**Sasuke. **

_Damn it!_

_What had the bastard done now?! H-Had he...joined that group of missing nin in some elusive quest for power?!_

A growl threatened to rip from his throat and he clenched his fists.

Tsunade looked at him curiously. The boy shouldn't have known anything yet. She wondered what he was thinking. Either way it was best that she set things straight. This was one mission that they couldn't afford to botch.

"Let me be clear Naruto. This group of missing-nin is _S-class_."

Naruto looked up in surprise. _S-class_? Teme was _S-class_ now?!

_"_From the limited information that we have gleaned it appears that their goal is to capture all the _bijuu _(tailed beasts). What this is for we have no idea. They utilise some kind of forbidden extraction jutsu to separate the _bijuu_ from their _jinchuuriki _that results in the death of the latter."

Naruto froze. "Suna. You said there was news from Suna. And you couldn't have figured this out if... it hadn't already happened...YOU'RE TELLING ME THAT _THIS _HAPPENED TO _GAARA_?!_"_

Tsunade would have applauded his improved deduction skills if it weren't for the fact that he was on the verge of letting out the _kyuubi_...and the fact that it wasn't the full story.

"WHERE IS HE?! HE CAN'T BE DEAD! DAMN IT! WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME SOONER?!"

"NARUTO!" Tsunade boomed. "CALM DOWN."

"YOU CAN'T EXPECT ME TO BE-"

"-He's NOT dead!"

"-CALM WHEN HE'S..._NOT dead_?"

"Yes, Naruto. The kazekage is _not _dead."

"K-kazekage...you mean he's the...ohh, Gaara - kazekage..."

"...he was captured."

"..._WHAT_?! Then I have to go rescue him NOW!"

"GODDAMNIT NARUTO! LET ME TALK WILL YOU?!"

Tsunade growled and continued without waiting for him to reply or jump to any more irrational conclusions.

"The _kazekage _was captured _six months ago_," she told him, stressing each and every word. "And _six months ago_ I sent a specially chosen team of shinobi to rescue him and the mission _was deemed a success_."

"..."

Naruto felt his fury and grief ebb away until the urgency was replaced by bitter helplessness.

"I should have known. I should have been told. I was out in the mountains training to save a friend..._having no damn idea that I could have lost another_."

Tsunade exhaled deeply. "Naruto. You're not a little kid anymore. You should know why you weren't told."

Naruto ground his teeth together, resisting the urge to snarl. "Yeah I _know_. It was for _my_ protection. You had no idea what their motives were and you didn't want to put _Konoha_ at risk."

_But it should have been _**my** _choice, _he wanted to say. _Even if I am Jinchuuriki, it shouldn't have taken away my right to choose for myself!_

Tsunade blinked. Naruto really had grown up. She could see him shaking, attempting to cage in the rage he felt for knowing nothing about what had happened to Gaara. She felt a pang of sympathy, helplessness was something she understood - had understood - very very well. That's why she couldn't tell him that their informant had in fact been Jiraiya.

"Naruto_,_ I am sending Team 7 on an A-rank mission."

Now it was Naruto's turn to blink.

"You are to check on the Kazekage's status and report back within a week."

Grudgingly, a smile broke out on his lips. "Yeah."

Then he was out of the door mumbling a quick "Thanks."

Tsunade smiled wryly and reclined back on her seat.

It had gone reasonably well.

"You can come in now, Nara."

The youth strode in languorously with a small smirk in place. "That was...troublesome."

Tsunade let out a rough bark of laughter. "Indeed."

Swiftly, she performed a releasing jutsu on the room and the genjutsu on her scroll vanished to reveal...six bottles of _sake _much to Shikamaru's amusement.

He patiently waited for her to address him.

She uncapped the bottle and tilted her head back emptying its contents into her mouth in one go. Placing the bottle back on her desk she wiped her mouth with her sleeve and smiled. "You were right. He didn't ask who I sent on the Suna mission. You're damn smart, Nara. Only you could figure out how best to approach him."

Shikamaru's smirk widened. "Unfortunately the credit doesn't belong to me, Hokage-sama."

Tsunade snorted. "Quit it boy. We both know you pretend to be lazier than you really are...to shirk any responsibility in the first place you smart, lazy twit."

She unscrewed her second bottle cap.

Shikamaru rose his eyebrow at the near-compliment, ignoring the fact that she was draining her second bottle of sake _and_ conveniently forgetting that she had a whole stack of papers to sign.

"It was Sakura's idea."

"_Sakura, _huh? I suppose that's believable..."

She gazed at him shrewdly out the corner of her eye. "You sound proud Nara...you're not crushing on my apprentice are you?"

Before he could reply she snorted and waved a hand. "I know...you wouldn't; it's too troublesome _and_ you'd be damn right about that. Honestly...I don't know what to do with that girl..."

She set the empty bottle on her desk with a clank.

Shikamaru sighed. "I wasn't going to say that it was troublesome...even though it is," he added hastily at the sudden frown on Tsunade's face. "...anyone who knows Sakura would be proud of her." He finished sincerely.

Tsunade smiled in agreement. "Indeed."

* * *

They had taken only two days to get to Suna, all thanks to Naruto's excessive eagerness to be united with his friend.

He travelled up ahead, Sakura and Sai closely behind in the middle and Kakashi at the rear in the typical cautionary travel formation. Well, Naruto was only in the front because he had sprinted off with a huge burst of stamina and no-one bothered to tell him off.

Just before they had left they had sent a hawk with a message to Suna announcing their arrival which explained why the tall, slightly built youth was leaning against the entry post, arms comfortably crossed and a purple-lined smirk stretched out on his face. With the jagged violet patterns covering his cheeks accentuating his slanted eyes and the typical Suna headcover/hitai-ate perking up at the corners like cat-ears, Kankuro looked as fierce as a fully-grown exotic jaguar.

"Good to see you all," he drawled, straightening up. "Especially you, Naruto - haven't seen _you_ in a _long_ time."

"Yeah... I've been training hard. You look like you've done well yourself." Naruto gave a foxy grin of his own. Kankuro's smirk widened then softened into a more humble expression as he darted his eyes over the rest of the Team.

He swung around again before Naruto could ask with an abrupt "Gaara's waiting" and walked off clearly intending for them to follow. Kakashi frowned as he processed the last bit of the interchange. His one visible eye darkened as he realised that Tsunade had either intentionally or unintentionally withheld some information from him about the status of Team 7.

Nothing about the village's layout seemed to have changed. They walked down the sandy streets eliciting less curious gazes than they had thought. It had been three years since they had become allies after all; perhaps an occasional sighting of Konoha-nin around Suna had become the norm.

Kankuro turned along the streets taking them past non-descript white houses and into a huge dome-shaped, five-storey building at the heart of the village. They entered an ordinary-looking office with a single mahogany desk and a matching chair with a carved design a tad more intricate than expected. It took Naruto a minute to realise that the material billowing near the window was not in fact a curtain - they did not use curtains in Suna - but a regally-cloaked figure peacefully gazing down upon his village.

"GAARA!"

Sakura stifled her laughter and Kankuro's eyes bulged as Naruto bounded across the room and all but embraced the boy in his excitement.

Sai smiled creepily at the scene while Kakashi appeared unaffected and unamused. "Naruto. He is the kazekage, you know?"

Naruto stopped short of embarrassing himself and grinned, opting to playfully punch Gaara in the shoulder instead. "Who knew, ay? Well you're not gonna leave me behind to bite the dust. I'll become the Hokage someday soon too _dattebayo_!"

Gaara blinked at the jab, mouth curving into a crooked smile but smile nonetheless at the blonde's exuberance.

"Whoa. Gaara you're _smiling_!"

The crooked smile immediately vanished, replaced with an awkward silence before Sakura burst into a fitful of giggles.

"_Baka._"

"You're stating the fucking obvious, man," Kankuro drawled.

"Ahahaha..." Naruto laughed sheepishly, scratching the back of his head and glancing apologetically at Gaara. "Sorry."

The small smile reappeared and Naruto felt himself grinning in response. Gaara had changed. Everyone had really. Three years was a long time.

"Damn it! I'm still chuunin!" He blurted out abruptly. "It's gonna be years before I can become Hokage!"

* * *

"Can I help you, sir? Did you need to have any injuries assessed?"

"No, no. I'm fine. I just want a word with...Haruno-san."

The nurse tilted her head confusedly. "Haruno...oh you mean Sakura-san?"

Kakashi fought the urge to scowl. He had thought that they addressed her more formally since she was from a village outside their own, but it seems that Sakura had become familiar with the hospital staff. This was something he could understand though. He had heard about an exchange program being put into effect between Konoha and Suna Hospital. No doubt, Sakura had been involved.

"Is it something urgent? Sakura-sensei is in a meeting with the hospital director. She'll be done in a few minutes."

Kakashi blinked. _Sensei? _Clearly Sakura had prestige to be called such a respectful title for a medic-nin.

He shook his head and the nurse left to do more pressing things, leaving Kakashi to brew in his thoughts.

_**.**_

_"Sakura..."_

_Kakashi looked up to see Gaara inclining his head in acknowledgement of her, a gesture which she returned with a gentle smile. _

_"...Sai."_

_The Root boy, on the other hand gazed back at Gaara with his usual fake smile, a tiny flicker of genuine respect in his obsidian eyes._

_**.**_

It had been nothing extraordinary but Kakashi had long learned how to look under theunderneath and interpret the subtle changes in their interaction as further evidence for his suspicions. Tsunade's lack of briefing was starting to getting on his nerves.

* * *

_Kankuro gazed after the pair as Temari gave a rare girly squeal of excitement and whisked Sakura away to who knows where. _

_"Are you oggling your _sister_?" _

_Kankuro spluttered. _

_"No, do I want to die?" He exclaimed indignantly, realising that Naruto was truly curious. _

_"Oh."_

_They walked a few steps before Naruto suddenly turned around and gripped him by the shirt. "Oh you so wanna die." _

_"-What the hell?!"_

_"You were oggling _Sakura_!" _

_"...So what if I was?" _

_Naruto glared at him in disbelief and Kankuro hurriedly explained._

_"...It's not like I'm going to do anything about it." _

_Naruto contemplated this for a while before he released his grip. "Not that I want you to or anything but why?" _

_"Why I think Sakura's attractive or why I'm not going to do anything about it? Because you have to be pretty damn oblivious if it's the first one."_

_Naruto flushed not so secretly. "Shut up. The second one." _

_Kankuro smirked knowingly._

_._

_ "...Cos she's way out of my league."_

* * *

"_Sakura._"

Sakura glanced up from her clipboard in surprise.

"Kakashi-sensei."

His face was unreadable. "When you're done, I want to have a talk with you. I'll be waiting outside."

"...Alright."

* * *

_"...Why?" _

_"What do you mean why?!" Kankuro said incredulously. "She's the Hokage's apprentice - The Slug Princess's apprentice. She's a damn exceptional medic and a top-notch jounin. No she's even better than that...she's S-rank, dude!"_

_"S-rank?!__" _

_"Isn't she your teammate? How could you possibly not know?"_

_"...Sakura...S...rank..."_

_"When Gaara was captured we sent for help from Konoha and Sakura was among those who came. She saved my life, Naruto. Akasuna no Sasori is a master of puppet-jutsu and extremely rare and exotic poisons. When she arrived the first thing she did was come up with a makeshift antidote to slow the poison down, that was incredible in itself. But she didn't just slow it down she completely cured it."_

_"..."_

_"She fought Sasori two-on-one with Chiyo-obaasama and killed him, Naruto. He was a member of Akatsuki."_

_Naruto was stunned. Sakura...killed? An S-rank missing nin strong enough to capture a bijuu? _

_"She's in the enemy bingo books, you know? We got our hands on it from intel. She's nicknamed 'Pink Devil'."_

_"Oi, Kankuro...Y-You're...not making this up, are you?" _

_"..." _

_"...Do I really have to answer that?"_

* * *

He was at his limit. He could take the fact that she had made it to ANBU without him knowing. He could even take the fact (maybe) that he wasn't informed of Sakura being sent on a S-rank mission. But he couldn't take the fact that he wasn't informed about the fact that one of _his_ students had KILLED A GODFORSAKEN AKATSUKI MEMBER!

He had every right to know that it was Sakura who had killed Akasuna no Sasori! And he sure as hell had every right to know _how_ it happened too!

A sudden ripple of chakra flooded through the air and he only narrowly dodged the chakra-infused punch to the side of his head.

"What are you doing, _Sakura_?" He asked incredulously.

"Isn't it obvious, _Kakashi_?" She replied grimly. "I know you want to fight me."

He narrowed his eyes distractedly; she had dropped the 'sensei'. Well they were of equal rank now after all.

"You want to gauge my abilities with your own eyes. You are sick and tired of only hearing about me from others but not _knowing _for yourself what I can do. It frustrates you not to _know_.

"You want to see...to test me first hand...am I right, _sensei_?"

Kakashi exploded.

Never had anyone succeeded in getting him so riled up before. But Sakura had.

All because she knew more about him then he as her teacher should damn well know about her. The _sensei _back on her tongue carried a mocking tone even if her face was carefully blank.

He felt as if he had failed...failed so miserably. How had it all gone so wrong?

* * *

_Months later, Kakashi is sitting forlornly in the long grass at the memorial site, head held in his hands, thinking of this very moment._

_No. It hadn't been too late back then. Hadn't been too late to save Sakura from had happened. _

_But how could he have known what would happen?_

_- How could he have known that he should have acted in that moment?_

_- How could he have known that it would all go downhill - from worse to worst - in a blink of an eye?_

_"Sakura," he whispered bitterly. _

_**"You know I hate not knowing."**_

* * *

"_Fight me, Sakura_."

Chidori burst into life in the palm of his hand.

The corners of her lips quirked; she was tempted to do the same.

But she knew that he didn't want her to - didn't want her to use what _he_ had taught her. What he wanted to know was what he _hadn't_ taught her; what she had learnt all by herself.

"No holding back, Sakura." Kakashi warned.

"...Yeah," she agreed.

_Sorry sensei._

_I lied._

* * *

**_To be continued. _**

**_Please review. _**


	11. Chapter 9 - Cherry Blossom of Konoha IV

_**To **_**Somebody Lost **_**those are some very interesting predictions **__**（＾∇＾）**__**but you're not quite right. I won't be giving much away if I tell you this: the romance is going to be slow and subtle. Itachi isn't making an appearance any time soon and neither is Sasuke and by soon I mean in the next few chapters cos I know I love flashbacks and flashforwards. You'll have to make do with Sakura getting her romance from somewhere else, won't you? :P**_

_**And OMG Dina Sana, you were the first reviewer yet again. Thank you for your continued support and I hope to see a longer review from you someday. This is once again dedicated to you. ;)**_

* * *

**The Cherry Blossom of Konoha IV**

_"Nothing good lasts forever."_

_- _Unknown

* * *

**_He wouldn't underestimate her this time._**

Kakashi repeated that to himself and immediately shifted into an offensive stance - an exceedingly rare action for him. In his early days he had been impetuous enough to rival his boisterous blonde student but over the years experience had drilled into him the wiseness of observing your enemy before you rushed into any plan of attack. But right now it was the last thing he cared about.

To hell with being careful.

**_This_ was going to be a fight on pure instinct.**

His _goal_ was not winning. It wasn't important whether he lost to Sakura or not. His goal was to force her to open up to him. _This _was going to be a brutal re-assessment of who Sakura was and what she was capable of. Nothing like when they had first met when they had asked for simple likes, dislikes and ambition.

_Who are you, Sakura? _

With that thought in mind, Kakashi charged forward, the force whipping the stray lock of silver hair off his forehead and straining his muscles. The lethal blue lightning crackled in his right arm as he brought his arm back and drove it with alarming speed into Sakura's torso.

_Because he knew she could dodge it._

Sakura's face contorted with horror, her mouth dropped open in a mute scream as the pulses of the _chidori_ mutilated her body and sent her limbs jerking in violent spasms. It was graphic. Gory.

_That was a low blow, Sakura. _

The genjutsu vanished seconds later, leaving a log in her place that was nearly burnt to a crisp with the heat of his _chidori_.

A simple substitution jutsu.

**_You can do better than that._**

He leapt into the air as the sand dunes around him began collapsing onto the training ground; Sakura had obviously unleashed her monstrous strength into those strikes. He dodged agilely, both feet landing solidly on undisturbed sand.

**_Better than _that _too!_**

Kakashi growled.

_**Impress me, Sakura!**_

Without taking a breath he brought his hands together into his first seal...then leapt out of the way as a dozen kunai flew at him from every direction.

_How-? A trap? _

Kakashi slunk back into the cover of the few sand dunes that were still intact.

Even if it was clever he would be severely disappointed.

He flinched as a tip of a kunai appeared centimetres away from his face; it had pierced through the cover of the sand. Smiling wryly, Kakashi took a few seconds to steady his wildly palpitating heart. Sakura's sheer strength was bound to give him a heart attack someday. He wasn't so young anymore.

Sighing, he quickly assessed the situation.

The last few attacks had been too precise to have been a trap. She couldn't possibly have predicted which way he would move, right?

Haruno Sakura maybe smart but she was no Shikamaru.

He lifted up his hitai-ate grimly; it was time to use his Sharingan.

The single crimson eye honed in on his surroundings and the corners of his lips quirked up.

Four Sakuras were carefully hidden behind odd rocks and sand dunes.

_So she knows how to make shadow clones. _

Kakashi let his eyes linger a bit longer.

_No, not just 'make' them. __  
_

With her precise control of chakra she had made it so that each clone had exactly the same amount of chakra as she normally did. Even with his Sharingan on Kakashi had not the slightest idea which Sakura was the real Sakura.

_Smart girl. _

Well, he'd just have to attack all of them then. Shuriken sliced the air at where two of the Sakura's had been a heartbeat before and two kunai whizzed past in the other direction.

_Look under the underneath._

He wondered if Sakura had remembered his lesson. The explosive tags he had attached to the kunai exploded sending sand and debris floating up in the hot, dry air. He heard her clones vanish with successive popping sounds.

_Ah, so she had forgotten. _

Then Kakashi realised the real Sakura hadn't moved back to shield herself from the flying particles but had instead sprinted forwards into the swirling sand. Two kunai whizzed past to either side of him, stabbing deep into the sand and promptly exploded. He shielded his eyes as more and more sand billowed up into the air.

Kakashi cracked a dry smile. _Sakura hadn't forgotten. _

Sakura had made use of his tactic and created some explosions of her own.

A second later he cursed and realised that it had only been a diversion. He shifted slightly too late and a chakra infused punch grazed his upper ribs sending sweet promises of pain flaring up the side of his torso. He winced, knowing it would bruise.

_So she planned to fight in this dust storm? _

It was a clever tactic to hinder his Sharingan but it would have the same effect on _her_. A double-edged sword, so why had Sakura used it?

Was she so confident that she could fight blind?

Muscles coiled and explosively extended in full power kicks, swipes hooks and jabs meant to disable in one hit. There was no holding back. They were both fighting blind. Using the contact of skin on skin, the salty smell of sweat and sounds of the breaths to coordinate the next attack. Sometimes the sand would clear and he with his crimson sight would have the advantage, he'd land a blow on Sakura hard enough to bruise and without so much with a gasp of pain she would kick the sand back up in the air and in the same breath lunge forward in retaliation. A sharp pain seared up his arm and he breathed heavily as he dodged her persistent attacks.

Adrenaline pumped around his body. She was good. Sakura was _good. _

When he had said that it was going to be a fight on pure instinct he had no idea how true it would be.

Her taijutsu had improved way beyond what he thought she was capable of, matching his strikes blow for blow. She was fast. She was strong and she was precise.

Two of her fingers hit barely brushed his nose and he heard the bone beneath it crack. He pushed away, both disengaging and recovering the breaths and returned to trade more strikes, punches and blows.

Pride surged up within him and beneath the cover of the dust storm Kakashi allowed himself to truly smile.

Sakura was strong. Stronger than any other female he knew. More than Rin. Possibly strong enough to rival Tsunade.

_Was it enough?_

His smile turned into confusion. Why was he worried that it wouldn't be enough? Why did he even need to drive Sakura forward so much? To push her to her limit?

She had no thirst for revenge to quench. No deep ambition to become a respected Kage of a village. She was a civilian with a crush on a shinobi then a medic-nin who would rather save than kill. Suddenly a question that Kakashi had never thought to ask popped up in his mind.

Why? Why did Sakura need to be so strong? What was is that drove _her _to become ANBU - to become S-class?

Kakashi was a man who buried himself in his missions to forget the horrors and loss of the past. But Sakura...she wasn't like that.

Her family, her teammates...were all still alive.

"_Being a ninja is not all fun and games, Kenji-kun."_

If that is how she saw it then why...?

He scarcely dodged the blow to his face. She locked her knee behind his in a sweep that would knock him to the ground. He retaliated by sliding his other foot back behind hers threatening to take her down with him, his torso twisting in an attempt to position her right arm in a joint lock.

"Bad idea, Kakashi. I can sever the chakra network at the base of your spine," she murmured, her fingers glowing green to illustrate her point.

"I can _chidori_ you, Sakura."

She looked into the crimson eye of his Sharingan and grinned. "Want to call it stalemate?"

What Kakashi didn't know is that it wasn't stalemate. She had a jutsu up her sleeves that made it impossible for him to land a single blow on her. A jutsu that she would never show him.

* * *

_Years later_ _stuck in a rather compromising position, staring into a pair of crimson eyes and gulping inwardly as their owner's fingers trace the base of her throat, Sakura pulls herself together with a triumphant smirk and smugly assures her unwelcome guest:_

_._

_**"It is a technique that even you cannot copy." **_

* * *

He tried to detach himself and in an instant her hands were moving.

"You're cheating, Sakura -" he began. Then he realised that her fingers were hooked on the edges of his mask. His eyes widened and he froze. Emerald eyes gazed at him knowingly.

"It's not time yet, is it Kakashi?"

The hazy storm had disappeared, leaving him staring at the bright veridian in the midst of the glowing red of the Suna sunset.

_He wasn't ready to be unmasked. _

_She wasn't ready to bare her secrets. _

_They didn't trust each other enough to do it. _

_It wasn't the right time. _

"Let's go back, sensei."

He nodded, exhausted. She had returned to calling him her _sensei_ and he was too tired to correct her. Fighting Sakura was as draining mentally as it was physical. Because any interaction with Sakura gave little to no answers; only more and more perplexing questions.

xXXXx

Up in the sky watching from overhead was a figure that both had been too exhausted - or too absorbed in their battle - to detect.

"She is a sly one," he remarked in a gravelly voice surprisingly lacking of emotion.

"I don't think she noticed I was watching but she only ever used taijutsu. I reckon she was manipulating the fight with the Copy-nin. Stopped him before he could bring in ninjutsu into the battle."

A slight buzzing noise came from his earpiece. "Understood. I'll make the arrangements for the plan tonight."

Back in Konoha age-old, wrinkly fingers flicked the switch on the receiving device off. He shifted back until he was leaning back comfortably in his armchair.

The girl was smart if she was able to manipulate the Copy-nin. But that wasn't anything he didn't already know. Haruno Sakura _was_ smart. Smart enough to figure out _his_ secret.

Too bad she wasn't smart enough to keep her mouth shut around Sai.

"Come in."

The dark-haired youth slid back the traditional paper sliding door and entered quietly. He bowed and kneeled back down in _seiza _position on the pristine nightingale floorboards, which creaked with every movement he made.

Danzou threaded his fingers together and placed his hands onto his staff. In a curt voice full of authority, he delivered his instructions to the Root ANBU.

"Make sure Sai doesn't know about this."

"Hai, Danzou-sama."

* * *

**A/N: ****So I felt like the Cherry Blossom of Konoha Arc needed to end there. It's short but I couldn't write anymore without feeling that I've messed up the structure. If you are looking forward to my next chapter let me know in a sweet review won't ya?**

**NEXT CHAPTER PREVIEW - ****"Falling Prey to Darkness"**

_They sprinted onwards, using more and more chakra in their desperation to reach the site on time and yet painfully aware that they needed enough left in their reserves to engage in combat once they arrived._

_Drawing to a sharp halt, clouds of sand rising at their feet, they stared dazedly at the huge boulder obstructing the cave entrance._

_Tenten licked her dry lips and spoke aloud what they were all thinking. "It can't be that easy..." _


End file.
